What’s next for Avengers: Endgame surviving heroes?

Avengers: Endgame meant the end for a few superheroes, but we still have another MCU phase to look forward too. So what’s next for some of these surviving heroes?

Warning: If you couldn’t tell from the headline, this article contains spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.

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You might consider our headline a slight spoiler, but Avengers: Endgame especially had a spoiler in its own title. Hint: It marks the end.

Beyond just signifying the end of an era of the original six Avengers and potentially the Russo brothers’ last film in the MCU, Endgame supplied us with a ton of inquiries. Such as: Are we really done with Thanos? How many more realities and alternate universes are there? Are soul-stone-related deaths reversible? And, what’s next for some of the Endgame survivors?

We would roll call all the Endgame survivors, but that would be a lengthy list. With all the dusted heroes from Infinity War reprising their roles in the MCU moving forward, there’s a lot of open-ended possibilities for the post-Endgame MCU. Considering Natasha Romanoff and Tony Stark’s fate in Endgame, the future films will likely take on a new tone.

Nonetheless, let’s discuss the future for Black Panther, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, and Captain Marvel.

Black Panther

Albeit, Black Panther 2 has a tentative release date of late 2020 or early 2021, according to Digital Spy. After the snappening and watching our favorite Wakandans get dusted in terms of Endgame screen time, it seems like we’ll have to wait awhile before we see T’Challa return. It’ll be worth the wait though.

Given the destructive battle of Wakanda during Infinity War’s timeline, Black Panther 2 could start with enforcing securing or even rebuilding some infrastructures. However, any remaining debris from Thanos probably isn’t the only aftermath T’Challa will have to address. During her hologram meeting with the other Avengers in Endgame, Okoye references earthquakes underneath Wakanda. Does that sound like Namor to you? Because it sounds like Namor to us.

It appears that Endgame might have subtlety references the next villain of Wakanda. Even if Namor isn’t the main villain in BP 2, we’re looking forward to what’s next for the royal family.

Doctor Strange

With all the new realities and the multiple references of the multiverse, Doctor Strange’s second film will have a lot of ambiguous, yet prevailing threats. After all, there are bound to be a lot of new threats coming to Earth now.

As Den of Geek reports, screen Jon Spaiht has mentioned Clea as a possible addition to Doctor Strange 2. While she hasn’t been confirmed for the mystic lineup, Clea is a formidable sorceress, who just happens to be Dormammu’s niece. While Dormammu may or may not make a return in the second film, the fact that Clea also is romantically connected to Doctor Strange in the comics only makes everyone more complicated. Comics and complicated mesh perfectly together though. At least we think so.

Spider-Man

The friendly neighborhood Spider-Man swings into theaters on July 2, but Peter Parker is understandably not his usual chipper self. Directly following the heartbreaking outcome of (i.e. Tony Stark’s funeral and Natasha funeral she never got but definitely deserved), Spider-Man: Far From Home will focus on superheroes and mental health. Based on the trailer alone, Peter still has a lot of grieving to do given the loss of his father figure and role model.

With continued references to the multiverse and Mysterio’s shenanigans, some elementals from a different Earth are the apparent bad guys in this second Spider-Man film. However, Mysterio is a known villain with even more notorious manipulation powers, so we have a hunch that Mysterio is actually the villain in Far From Home. He can create illusions, after all, so we can’t really trust anything in the trailers.

Captain Marvel

Inverse notes that Marvel has yet to announce any future Captain Marvel films. However, we can’t imagine Phase 4 without Carol.

Considering the first film’s billion-dollar box office success, we don’t think Disney would miss out on continuing Carol Danvers’ arc into a second film and beyond. Space is the next frontier for the MCU, and Captain Marvel 2 could take Carol’s story in a lot of different directions. It could continue her narrative in conjunction with the Kree, Skrulls, or both. We could see another critical Captain Marvel, Monica Rambeau (because we should see her super-powered debut soon). Or, Carol’s second film could take place in the past and set up a new overarching villain for the current 2023 timeline in the MCU.

Well beyond the aforementioned titular heroes, there are a lot of surviving characters who will likely continue or start their own chapters in the MCU. Sam Wilson should and likely will have his own Captain America trilogy. Though the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer contains a monologue that’s hopeful for Iron Man fans, the need for Iron Man is symbolic. Rhodey could possibly helm the Iron Man symbol in the future of the MCU. Otherwise, the symbol could go to a certain teen named Riri Willaims who started her heroic character in the comics after Tony Stark was out of commission.

Given the general nature of Avengers: Endgame, there are a lot of open ends in the MCU right now. While the film ended a few journeys, it also opens up a universe (and some) or opportunities for new stories and new characters in the future phases.