Why The Marvels credit scene is hard to trust
The Marvels is a lot of fun (contrary to what misogynist fanboys might think) but for the most part, it's just that. A fun, fairly inconsequential ride that breezes past with only a few truly memorable moments. (Yes, we are of course referring to the feline rescue effort and that musical moment.)
But then, after the space dust has settled, The Marvels suddenly hits us with not one but two game-changing moments that represent a major turning point for the MCU at large.
The first features Ms Marvel doing her best Nick Fury impression to recruit Kate Bishop and others into a new Young Avengers team. The film's first and only post-credit scene then follows Monica Rambeau into an alternate dimension, one where her mother is now a hero named Binary and the X-Men are officially made canon in the MCU.
Now that The Marvels is on Disney+, a whole new audience is getting to experience these game-changing reveals, but can we even trust them?
The ramifications of the credit scene are huge, if not unexpected. Since Disney merged with Fox in 2019, it was only a matter of time before Marvel's merry band of mutants finally joined the Avengers on screen in one shared universe. The question now is when will this big reveal actually pay off?
Two days before The Marvels hit cinemas in November 2023, Marvel chief Kevin Feige teased that the X-Men would return "perhaps soon" in live action (via EW). "Perhaps soon," isn't exactly the clear answer fans might be hoping for but, as it stands, no one is officially attached to write or direct the next X-Men movie.
No casting announcements have been made either, although it stands to reason that various actors from the previous Fox films will return, including Kelsey Grammer's Beast (as seen at the end of The Marvels), as well as Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, who will return in Deadpool 3.
This all means that the payoff from The Marvels post-credit scene could take years to fully come to fruition, assuming that Monica Rambeau doesn't pop up in Deadpool's next venture. Even if she does, that's still an eight-month wait.
Either way, the X-Men are a huge deal and it makes sense that their full-on return might take some time. Filmmaking is a long process, after all, and if we've learned anything from the past few years, it's that unexpected delays can come out of nowhere and affect studios at any given time.
The issue here though is that this wouldn't be the first time Marvel has played the long game with their post-credit teases, to the point where we're left wondering if some will ever pay off at all.
Comedy moments aside, fans are still waiting on some pretty huge developments that were thrown our way at the end of various Marvel films during the past few years then never mentioned again.
Remember when Sharon Carter was revealed to be the Power Broker, the Big Bad who plagued Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier? Don't expect to see that 2021 development addressed again until the next Captain America film arrives in 2025.
Without a confirmed sequel of his own to look forward to, Shang-Chi is unlikely to come back until the new Avengers team rallies in Kang Dynasty, which is scheduled to premiere on May 1, 2026, five years after Simu Liu's debut in the MCU. It seems Marvel was a bit premature teaming him up with other heroes in that film's main post-credits scene.
The end of Eternals teased Dane Whitman's turn into Black Knight, as well as Pip the Troll and even Harry Styles as Eros/Starfox, Thanos' heroic yet slutty brother, in a move seemingly designed to make headlines rather than actually add anything meaningful to the story.
Or at least that's how it feels right now with the future of both The Eternals and Blade so uncertain (despite Feige's claim to the contrary).
And the list goes on. Oscar Isaac's Moon Knight, Charlize Theron's Clea, Brett Goldstein's Hercules and Tim Roth's Abomination have all been lined up, hovering in a void of post-credits limbo that may or may never be touched on again.
The Spider-Verse is a whole other issue entirely, now that the likes of Morbius, Venom and Vulture have all crossed paths in Sony and Marvel's separate-yet-joined universes. It looks like the studios themselves aren't really sure where to go with these characters given all the delays and cancellations, not to mention how Tom Holland's Spidey might figure into all this.
With the future of so many characters up in the air, Marvel has backed itself into a corner. Yes, it's thrilling to see this world come to life with as much breadth as the comics that inspired it but, just like the comics, Marvel's onscreen ventures are getting more and more clogged with a tangled continuity that creates too many promises that they can't hope to deliver on – or at least not any time soon.
To be fair, this isn't a new issue for Marvel. It took years for that Thanos tease in Avengers: Age of Ultron to go anywhere, but the difference with that one is that these reveals used to be a major event, just like the release of a Marvel film itself.
And with fewer movies scheduled, fans were reassured that Thanos would indeed take centre stage at some point. There was no question if or when this might happen, unlike nowadays with so many new credit scenes to address.
There is some hope though. A combination of unforeseen delays and Marvel's own realisation that they're over-saturating the market has led to a sudden decrease in the number of projects coming our way.
In fact, Deadpool 3 is the only movie that's been confirmed to arrive in 2024, and there are far fewer shows lined up next year too.
Yes, this does mean that we'll have to wait even longer for all these post-credit scenes to finally pay off, but at least it gives Marvel more time to put a plan in place and get people excited about their movies again.
That's not to say a plan hasn't been made already. For all we know, every single tease and reveal has been scheduled to be addressed at a specific later date. Regardless of that, patience is still being stretched at a time when the audience's love for Marvel is waning.
If they're not careful, fans won't stick around for when the X-Men and Young Avengers do finally arrive in 2028 or beyond. Perhaps it's time for Marvel to retire post-credit scenes completely, or at least only use them when they're certain that the payoff can be delivered.
At the end of the day, these reveals are supposed to be fun, not a test of our trust or patience.
For more on The Marvels, check out:
• The Marvels review
• How long is The Marvels?
• When will The Marvels be released on Disney+?
• What age rating is The Marvels?
• How many credit scenes are in The Marvels?
• The Marvels mid-credit scene explained
• What you need to know before watching The Marvels
The Marvels is now available to watch on Disney+.
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