In 2021 and 2022, Marvel Studios released 10 brand-new projects on Disney+: eight shows and two specials. This year was looking like it might follow suit with plans for What If season two, Secret Invasion, Loki season two, Echo, Ironheart, and Agatha: Coven of Chaos all potentially set for release. However, with Bob Iger now back as the CEO of Disney, those plans might be changing.
Days after Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was quoted as saying “The pace at which we’re putting out the Disney+ shows will change so they can each get a chance to shine,” the Hollywood Reporter has revealed that it’s already begun. According to the trade, Secret Invasion and Loki season two are the only shows sure to be released this year, while the Hawkeye spinoff Echo and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever follow-up Ironheart might be held for 2024 (with any potential MCU continuity issues being fixed in post-production). No word on the status of What If season two, though it has been in the works for some time, or Agatha, though that’s currently in production. The piece also mentions shows still in early development, like Nova, will be slowed down. (News of Nova coming to the MCU broke last year, but it was unclear if it would be for theatres for Disney+, and we might now have our confirmation.)
io9 reached out to Disney for comment or clarification on this and will update the story if or when we hear back.
Once you take a step back here, all of this certainly makes sense. Marvel was releasing so many shows one after the other the past few years, odds are you may have forgotten about events in Moon Knight or Ms. Marvel or She-Hulk. There’s no real time to digest them. Plus, you have to think, the breakneck pace couldn’t have been great for the productions themselves, though we feel like most of the shows were certainly quite good. From Iger, and therefore Feige’s, perspective, you can make an educated guess that releasing so much product so quickly was just incredibly expensive. And with Disney tightening its belt financially, pumping the breaks is a way to spend less and maybe add some more excitement to the important brand.