Slightly more than a week after announcing premiere dates for two Marvel mystery movies, Disney has revealed another: July 8, 2016. That will be the third release in Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which begins Nov. 6, 2015 with director Edgar Wright’s “Ant-Man,” which is followed (so far) by projects on May 6, 2016, July 8, 2016 and May 5, 2017.
Most likely, one of those three dates is set aside for “Doctor Strange,” which Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed in January is part of the Phase Three plans. The others, however, are much more difficult to figure out, as the studio has a laundry list of adaptations in the early stages — ranging from Black Panther to Iron Fist to “Runaways,” which was on the fast track until late 2010, when Marvel abruptly shifted focus to “The Avengers” (a decision that certainly paid off, to the tune of $1.5 billion).
There also are properties like the Punisher, Blade, Daredevil and Ghost Rider, which have relatively recently reverted back to the studio; however, there appears to be no hurry to return them to the big screen. Also don’t discount the likelihood that at least one of those dates may be reserved for a sequel to an existing franchise, like “Captain America” or “Thor.”
