Kevin Feige Has One Big Criticism of the MCU (And He’s Right)

Marvel Studios’ president Kevin Feige has reportedly admitted that his company rushed out too many TV shows and movies in recent years, and that keeping up with the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become more like homework for some viewers than entertainment. The paraphrased quote comes from a new report by The Wall Street Journal, which Feige declined to comment on personally. However, the outlet spoke to over a dozen people who have either worked at Marvel or done business with Marvel Studios, claiming insider knowledge of Feige’s strategies. Their insights fit with the studio’s own public statements about scaling back on TV shows in the hopes that more fans will keep up with the franchise if they focus on quality over quantity.

This new report paints a broad picture of Feige’s career and the trajectory of the MCU, particularly from the massive success of Avengers: Endgame onward. Of course, Hollywood as a whole has been rocked by several huge events since then — the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2023 Hollywood labor strikes in particular, as well as natural disasters like the L.A. wildfires in January. On top of that, Marvel seems to have been particularly affected by the “streaming boom,” which some writers are already referring to in the past tense.

Insiders said that Disney was already making plans to fill out its Disney+ slate when Endgame was dominating the box office, and the company already expected Marvel to provide plenty of new material. Feige’s team was small and tight-knit at the time, with little hope of keeping up with Disney’s new demands. Still, Feige reportedly wanted to set lofty goals for their Disney+ shows in order to be a “good corporate citizen” — in addition to telling even more exciting stories.

[RELATED: When Will Marvel’s Thunderbolts* Stream on Disney+?]

Marvel Studios’ established processes were strained by the production of multiple TV shows and movies. In particular, the long-standing expectation that Feige would personally have final say on all creative matters became major bottleneck for the studio. In some cases, it produced weeks of wasted work as employees continued their projects while waiting for a chance to get approval from Feige. If he wanted to make big changes, they’d have to go back several steps.

While Marvel’s first two Disney+ shows — Loki and WandaVision — were hits, several others came in notably below expectations — Ms. Marvel and Secret Invasion, in particular. Even the reliable movies began to suffer as well, with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels in particular getting shout-outs here. The sources acknowledged that the strain on their time and resources led to a dip in quality in some cases, while the cultural phenomenon of “Marvel fatigue” caused viewers to lose interest even when the quality was there. For example, the studio still mourns the low viewership of Ms. Marvel, feeling it really represents the MCU well.

Feige’s New Focus

This report is interesting, though we have known for a while that Feige was overhauling the MCU’s creative strategy. Back in 2023, the company announced that it would reduce the number of TV shows and movies per year, and that Feige would be delegating work on the TV shows to a different executive. Around that time, the studio also had to pivot narratively away from its planned main villain, Kang the Conqueror, to Dr. Doom.

Going back to star Robert Downey Jr. and directors the Russo brothers was reportedly Feige’s idea, and insiders said it represents a general strategy of keeping a small circle of trust. In theory, the outlook has been better since then, but in practice there have still been a few flops to worry about, including The Marvels and Captain America: Brave New World.

Hopefully, this weekend’s premiere of Thunderbolts* can help brighten the horizons ofr the MCU. Feige is reportedly hoping that crowds will turn out for this crossover team-up, but that it will invigorate them to get out and see The Fantastic Four: First Steps when it hits theaters on July 25th. Together, these two movies will feed directly into Avengers: Doomsday, and from there, the true climax of the Multiverse Saga. Thunderbolts* is in theaters now.