Marvel has reportedly shifted the dates for Agatha: Darkhold Diaries, Echo, What If…?’s second season, X-Men ’97, and more amid the ongoing strikes and changes to Disney+’s strategy.
As reported by THR, SAG-AFTRA and the WGA’s strikes have obviously impacted production and development of these MCU shows, but sources have also said “Marvel wants to focus its efforts to make each title an event for fans and audiences.” Its plan to make that so appears to be spreading out its upcoming content releases more than ever before.
While Loki’s second season appears to be safe and locked to that October 6 date, the next show – the second season of Marvel’s What If…? – isn’t set to arrive until near Christmas Day. This anthology series was originally planned to arrive in early 2023.
Echo, which is a spin-off from Hawkeye, was going to be released on November 29, but it is now slated to have all its episodes drop in January 2024. Echo looks to have a “grittier and more grounded tone” than other MCU projects and will feature cameos from Daredevil and The Kingpin.
X-Men ’97, which looks to pick up the torch of the iconic 1990s X-Men series, was going to have a fall 2023 debut before Disney shifted it to early 2024. Sources claim this show is “retro and a love letter to the original” and that a second season is currently in the works.
Agatha: Darkhold Diaries, which was seemingly just changed from its previous known title of Agatha: Coven of Chaos, was announced for winter 2023. Now, the Kathryn Hahn-led series won’t hit Disney+ until early fall 2024 as a lead-up to Halloween.
There were a few other shows that don’t have dates that also appear to have been impacted by the strikes, including Ironheart. The Dominique Thorn-led series, which could have been released this fall if all the cards fell into place, now has been taken off the schedule as the strikes are preventing it from being completed.
Daredevil: Born Again was expected for spring 2024, but the strikes have brought the production to a halt despite them being previously hard at work on it. Lastly, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s Wonderman was also put on pause in the middle of its production due to the strikes.
For more, check out Marvel’s original plan for Phase 5 of the MCU from San Diego Comic-Con 2023 and our breakdown of The Marvels’ latest trailer, which is the next MCU film set to him theaters.
Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].
Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.
