Kevin Feige Reveals How Marvel Phase 5 Feeds Into Avengers: Secret Wars

Marvel Studios will release the first film in Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe this weekend with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and the film has already broken a record for the studio. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is officially the second film in the MCU that has a rotten score on Rotten Tomatoes following The Eternals. The films reviews are pretty mixed but lean on the negative side and that probably isn't the start to Phase 5 that they wanted. Phases 4, 5 and 6 are all a part of The Multiverse Saga and will culminate with Avengers: Secret Wars, and if you were wondering how Phase 5 would tie into the film, we finally have an answer. In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige revealed how Phase 5 feeds into the sixth Avengers movie.

"Not every film in the Infinity Saga focused on the Infinity Stones or Thanos, and it'll be the same across 5 and 6. But we're gearing up. People will get a taste of this in a big way in Quantumania as we lead to Avengers: Secret Wars, which I'm extremely excited for," Feige told the magazine. "You know, I'm coming up on 23 years at Marvel. That's a long time. It's not quite half my life, but it's almost half my life. [Laughs] Many of us have been together for a decade or more. And we only do it because we are so excited and in love with the potential for what we can do ahead. The storylines that weave together through Phase 5 and 6 into Secret Wars and the opportunities that the multiverse brings storytelling-wise, it's a whole new aspect to the MCU. "

The next Marvel Studios film to be released will be Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quatumania. Empire Magazine recently had a chat with director Peyton Reed about how the stakes have risen going into Quantumania. "People felt like, Oh, these are fun little palate cleansers after a gigantic Avengers movie," Reed told the outlet. "For this third one, I said, 'I don't want to be the palate cleanser anymore. I want to be the big Avengers movie.'"

"I grew up a real Marvel comics nerd, and there are a handful of antagonists in the Marvel comics universe who are all-timers," Reed continued. "Loki, obviously. Doctor Doom from the Fantastic Four. And Kang the Conqueror. In conversations with Kevin Feige and Marvel, it was like, I want to put Ant-Man and Wasp up against a really formidable villain in this movie, and so we're doing Kang the Conqueror." 

"In the comics, Kang has dominion over time, he's a time traveler. His situation is a little bit different in this movie, which I won't spoil for you, but he's someone who, [while] we live very linear lives, from childhood to death, Kang doesn't exist that way," the director smirked. "It struck me as interesting to take the tiniest Avengers — in some people's minds maybe the least powerful Avengers — and put them up against the most powerful force in the multiverse."

The studio describes the film as follows: "In the film, which officially kicks off phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Super-Hero partners Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Together, with Hope's parents Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible. Jonathan Majors joins the adventure as Kang."

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will hit theaters on February 17th!

What do you think about his comments? Are you excited for Avengers: Secret Wars? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!