Disney to Announce Slate With New Marvel and Lucasfilm Projects During Investor Day 2020

Disney will announce its upcoming slate and reveal new projects from Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar during Investor Day 2020 on December 10, according to a report from an industry trade. The four-hour event focuses on Disney's direct-to-consumer streaming services, namely Disney+, which was at the center of last year's presentation taking place some eight months before the streamer's November 12 launch. It was during Investor Day 2019 that Marvel Studios officially announced its original titles for Disney+, including WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, and the animated What If...? with Marvel boss Kevin Feige also bringing with him a sneak peek from Avengers: Endgame.

During Disney Investor Day 2020, the company will announce new projects from Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar that encompass television as well as theatrical films, according to Deadline. The report adds this is where Disney will confirm that several of its live-action re-imaginings, including Emma Stone's Cruella and the Tom Hanks-starring Pinocchio, will premiere exclusively on Disney+ instead of theaters.

Confirmation of Disney's plans for its upcoming slate comes amid speculation the Thursday event will bring with it news about Marvel's Black Widow, which was supposed to kick off Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a theaters-only release on May 1 of this year.

The Scarlett Johansson-led blockbuster, taking place in-between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, was delayed until May 2021 amid theater closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic — leaving Marvel Studios without a theatrical release for the first time since 2009.

If Disney is sending Black Widow to streaming on Disney+, Thursday's event is where the company would announce such a move. Films that bypassed theaters for a streaming release on the service include Artemis Fowl, Hamilton, The One and Only Ivan, and the live-action Mulan, which was the first — and so far only — film to cost an additional fee of $29.99 during the three months it was available via Premier Access.

Just days ago, AT&T-owned WarnerMedia announced it would send its entire 2021 Warner Bros. slate — including DC movies Wonder Woman 1984 and The Suicide Squad — to its HBO Max streaming service for a day-and-date release, which puts those films on the platform the same day they open in theaters at no extra cost to subscribers.

In October, after The Walt Disney Company announced a restructuring to make streaming its "primary focus," CEO Bob Chapek said the company would reveal more about its plans for future theatrical releases during the December 10 event.

"I think you're going to hear a lot more on December 10 when we have our next investor conference," he told CNBC. "We plan to share a lot more details in terms of how this strategy and how this reorganization then translates into business actions, so I look forward to sharing a lot more on December 10."

The Walt Disney Company will webcast Investor Day 2020 on Thursday, December 10, starting at 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT.