MarvelBlog News for December 7th, 2025

Marvel just accidentally gave something away, while Gwyneth Paltrow couldn’t do that even if she tried.

We’ll talk about them and Nicholas Cage going noir in MarvelBlog News.

Whoops, My Bad

Did you watch Captain America: Brave New World? Please be honest.

I’m asking because I’ve seen the box office and the Nielsen Streaming ratings for the film.

Let’s just say that they’re not very Marvel-like, although there’s a lot of that going around lately.

To wit, I won’t go into it much, but I just got the first ratings for The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

Let’s just say that they’re in the range of Thunderbolts* and Brave New World, and that’s not good.

In fact, Marvel’s 2025 theatrical releases have performed at worst-case scenario levels.

That brings me back to the question I’m asking and why. There’s a decent chance you skipped the film.

If so, you have no idea who is on Captain America’s new team, which isn’t important now.

However, this ground WILL matter when Avengers: Doomsday debuts in theaters.

Society may view Sam Wilson as the Wish.com Captain America, but Marvel treats him right.

In the current MCU, Wilson is the de facto leader of all superheroes, given the absence of former Avengers.

So, we can safely expect the character to have a big role in the upcoming Avengers movies. Duh.

Well, Marvel appears to have outsmarted itself a bit by forgetting ours is a global society now.

Here’s a Twitter post about a Marvel presentation in Italy. Pay attention to the photos:

‘AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY’ was recently showcased during a Disney event in Italy. pic.twitter.com/YnTCGpnyMH

— Avengers Updates (@AvengersUpdated) December 2, 2025

 

Meet the Avengers?

Folks, that sure seems to indicate that Sam Wilson is working with a team that includes…Loki.

When last we saw the Norse deity, he had become the new He Who Remains.

His turn as an Avenger will definitely need some explaining if that’s the case…and he’s not the only one.

Wilson is also pictured with Ant-Man, Shang-Chi, and Thor, exactly one of which makes sense.

Scott Lang makes sense, as he’d been an Avenger previously with The Falcon and adored Captain America.

He’d certainly respect Wilson’s field promotion, and I guess Thor is there if Loki is there.

Presumably, the brothers will have had some sort of discussion about Loki’s shocking face turn.

Then, we have the outlier, Shang-Chi, who Marvel had fully intended to be an Avenger from the jump.

So, he makes sense as well. It’s just that the totality of these choices doesn’t mesh well.

We’re definitely talking about a super-strange combination of current Avengers.

Obviously, we also have New Avengers, who we were calling Thunderbolts until May.

This combination is interesting for a different reason. Avengers: Doomsday appears to be a team-up movie.

What I mean by that is we already know that the New Avengers and Fantastic Four are appearing.

Now that we’ve met Sam Wilson’s team of unofficial Avengers, that’s three different groups.

One of them, the former Thunderbolts, is endorsed by the government, while Wilson’s team is an unknown.

He just beat up the President, and Bucky appears to have quit Congress after less than one term.

Also, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier appear to be on diametrically opposed superhero teams.

There’s a lot in play here, and I’m starting to think Avengers: Doomsday is a 200-minute movie.

Marvel Miscellany

While we’re on the subject of the Avengers, I should mention another rumor.

Apparently, after Avengers: Secret Wars, the Russo Brothers will pass the torch once again.

This time, Destin Daniel Cretton may take over the crown jewel of the MCU…under one circumstance.

The director must find success with Spider-Man: Brand New Day before Marvel will consider it.

Now, I know what you’re all thinking. That seems like a foregone conclusion.

Well, here’s my counterpoint: Spider-Man 3. It was the can’t-miss movie of 20 years ago.

Today, people still mock the Jazz Hands scene and the overall quality of the film.

So, this one’s yet to be determined, although I very much like Destin Daniel Cretton as a storyteller.

Speaking of Sony’s side of Marvel storytelling, Spider-Noir has revealed its first image. Take a look!

First poster for ‘SPIDER-NOIR’, starring Nicolas Cage

Releasing in 2026 on Prime Video. pic.twitter.com/GAfGDvBTG1

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) December 3, 2025

The Nicholas Cage series also co-stars my beloved Lamorne Morris of New Girl and Brendan Gleeson.

The series currently has a TBA 2026 release date, so I’m a bit surprised they’re marketing it.

I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a confirmed release date or at least month/season soon.

TMZ posted set photos in October 2024, more than a year ago. So, Spider-Noir should be pretty much done.

The only way it wouldn’t be is if test audiences were grading the series poorly. That type of thing tends to leak.

Finally, just because it’s funny, here’s Robert Downey Jr. mercilessly mocking Gwyneth Paltrow.

As the actor tells it, she’s quite funny but “forever confused by the basic tenets of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its inhabitants.”

There’s more, and it’s all hysterical. You should read it.

 

 

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