Marvel Studios is heading back to Hall H. Deadline reports that the studio is set for a panel at San Diego Comic-Con next month. Marvel sat out the Hall H festivities last year.
We do not know what Marvel has planned for the 6,500+ fans who will camp out for days just to catch a glimpse of whatever the studio is working on. We can, however, take a few obvious guesses and speculate about something even more special.
Black Widow is currently in production for release next May. Marvel can confirm that news and hold a panel with star Scarlett Johansson and director Cate Shortland. If there is a Black Widow panel, it’s a good bet that Marvel will premiere the first-ever footage from the film in Hall H.
Next on Marvel’s soon-to-be-official slate is The Eternals (to be released in November 2020). That film will not start production until after SDCC, so a panel seems premature. Confirming the film’s existence and announcing the cast, however, is definitely possible. The studio could also show some concept art from the film.
Marvel has a number of other projects that we know are on the way in the near future. Shang-Chi, Black Panther 2, and Doctor Strange 2 all have directors attached and could be headed for Marvel Studios three 2021 release dates. The studio also has three dates set in 2022, all of which could be filled with official announcements at this year’s convention.
Marvel has already announced a few Disney+ series, but we could see concept art from them since all we have right now are titles. The reported Hawkeye series has not been made official yet, but could be at SDCC.
The wild card in all of this is Marvel’s other confirmed convention appearance this summer. The studio will also take part in D23 Expo in August. Marvel may opt to split its big announcements between the two shows. We will probably see that to some extent, but what if Marvel Studios does something different in Hall H this year?
Historically, Marvel panels in Hall H have always been about looking forward, but 2019 could be about looking back and, for some, saying goodbye. The area around the San Diego Convention Center is already being decorated with banners from Avengers: Endgame, a movie that’s already been released.
ICYMI: Marvel Studios is invading #SDCC… with banners, at least! The Gaslamp and airport are getting spiffy new #SDCC 50 banners: https://t.co/T946dUUvZd
— SDCC Unofficial Blog (@SD_Comic_Con) June 18, 2019
While it’s possible that Marvel is using Endgame banners because no post-2019 films have been announced, some of the banners even highlight the “Original Six” Avengers.
I’ll just leave these here. #AvengersEndgame #SDCC pic.twitter.com/oxlrDXUw6C
— Outside Comic Con (@OutsideComicCon) June 18, 2019
There are 5 #AvengersEndgame #SSCC banners in the @GaslampQuarter currently, and Twitter only allows 4 photos at a time, so last but certainly not least, Mr. Stark: pic.twitter.com/neNMGHbZIq
— Outside Comic Con (@OutsideComicCon) June 18, 2019
All of these banners could be in San Diego simply to build general Marvel Studios hype. That is completely possible, but there could be more to it. Marvel may take this opportunity to allow the original Avengers and the Hall H crowd to bid each other farewell.
Remember that Hall H never got a panel for Avengers: Infinity War or Endgame. D23 Expo got the Infinity War panel a week before SDCC in July 2017. Hall H got panels for Thor: Ragnarok and Black Panther, but only got a replay of the Infinity War footage that premiered at D23.
There was some thought that 2018 was going to be the farewell panel for the original Avengers since it seemed like the time for an Endgame panel. Marvel skipped Hall H entirely last year, though, leaving 2014’s Age of Ultron panel as the last time the SDCC crowd got to see the original Avengers together.
That just doesn’t seem right. It may ultimately prove to be just the way things are, but Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige has said on a number of occasions that the studio does not like to go to Hall H unless there is something really special to show. Announcing an upcoming slate is special enough, but not the biggest and most special thing Marvel can do.
The whole idea of Hall H is to promote what’s next, but perhaps this year will be an exception. It is the end of an era now that Marvel Studios has brought its unprecedented 22-film saga to a close. It’s a moment worth savoring and celebrating with the Marvel faithful inside Comic-Con’s hallowed hall.
It’s the best opportunity for the original Avengers and the Hall H crowd to tell each other “I love you 3000.”
SOURCE: Deadline
