Neither 2023 nor 2024. The year in which nerd cinema will be really tested will be 2025, when we will see an explosion of mega-productions of the genre hitting the screens at once and putting the strength of this type of film to the test. After all, it is not new that the strength of releases aimed at this audience has been questioned and, by all indications, the studios chose the middle of the decade to mark the peak of their strategies.
Just look at the calendar of premieres scheduled for two years from now. On the one hand, we will have the definitive entry of Fantastic Four to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the return of Avengers after six years. On the other hand, the sequence of Batman by Matt Reeves and the definitive beginning of the new DC Cinematographic Universe (DCU), with Superman: Legacy.
Not to mention, of course, other productions that have not yet been announced. There are at least two Marvel titles slated for this year, plus one from Star Wars. This all means that, in 2025, we will have at least one great novelty painting in theaters every two or three months. But do we still have the chops for all this?
The Marvel Dilemma
It’s no exaggeration to say that each MCU release is still a separate event in cinema. Not by chance, Disney continues to bet heavily on its superheroes both with a very extensive schedule and the insistence on reserving up to four dates each year for these films. And, for 2025, the studio seems to want to double that bet.
That’s because it will be this year that we will see the unfolding of Phase 6 with all the (speculated) great moments that Kevin Feige and his hat collection designed. The first big moment is the much talked about debut of Fantastic Fourscheduled for February 14.
The expectation around this film is being built right now. And not just because it’s the final chapter of the Multiverse Saga, but because of all the suspense surrounding the Fantastic Family’s entry into the MCU. Every comic book reader knows how important the Quartet is to Marvel’s history, as it was with these characters that the publisher became what it is today and, for that very reason, the studio has been preparing the public for Reed Richards and company to enter On the scene.
This strategy of mystery and speculation is something that has been working very well. It is enough to see that, still two years before the premiere of Fantastic Four, we keep theorizing and imagining who the four actors who will give life to the group will be. For this very reason, the arrival of the team to the screens will be one of the great milestones of 2025.
A little further on, on May 2nd, it’s time for us to Avengers: Kang Dynasty. This is the first Earth’s Mightiest Heroes movie to open since Completed, in 2019, which will also be heavily hyped to attract that audience that eventually disengages from the MCU over the years. More than a movie, you can bet that Marvel will sell the feature as an event that no one can miss.
The relationship between this Avengers e Quartet are more than obvious, not least because the villain Kang (Jonathan Majors) is a classic enemy of the team in the comics and that should make these two stories more connected than ever on screen. In this way, the MCU will soon launch two mega-productions with the potential to break the billion dollar mark.
I mean, so shareholders and producers expect. Even because Phase 4 and the beginning of Phase 5 were not that exciting and brought up a very real concern for the future of this universe: would the public already be saturated with this type of story? And, if so, is the fatigue of the MCU or the superhero genre as a whole?
That’s why 2025 presents itself as such a litmus test. With two colossal bets, Marvel will put the vitality of its stories to the test and we’ll find out if there’s room for new sagas or if people’s interest is already turning to other things.
DC’s turn
But the answer for the future of comic book cinema will only be partially given by Marvel. We will only find out the real situation of the genre from July 11th, when Superman: Legacy reaches the screens.
The feature marks the definitive debut of James Gunn and his DC Cinematographic Universe (DCU) already revamped and pointing a new path of stories. In the case of the Man of Steel, the idea is to show a more classic version of the character, bringing Clark Kent dealing with his Kryptonian heritage and human upbringing to show how he became the hero we know.
After an era in which Superman was treated almost like a homicidal maniac at the hands of Zack Snyder, the excitement surrounding Legacy is huge and James Gunn himself was quite moved by the idea of rescuing this image of the hero as the personification of justice and truth in an era when this is considered out of fashion. Furthermore, he confirmed that he will direct the film and related the legacy plot to his own.
All of this made the expectations around the film huge – not least because this is the first premiere in theaters of the new DCU. And, from what it was possible to notice from the announcements made by Gunn and Peter Safran, the presidents of DC Studios, it was an optimism on the part of the public, which seems to be with an open heart to see not only the Scout, but all the characters of the publisher winning a new treatment on screens.
That’s why the debut of The Batman: Parte 2 on October 3 is another unknown. Not that anyone doubts that the sequel to one of the biggest hits of 2022 will be good, but because director Matt Reeves’ plot takes place in another DCU universe and we’ll find out if the public will buy this proposal or if Warner will, more once stumble in your planning.
It’s for this reason that 2025 is important not just for DC, but for comic book cinema as a whole. The much-commented saturation that part of the public and critics point to will only be confirmed if we see this drop happening on both sides of the publishing market. If Marvel and DC fail, it may be that we really are heading towards a new moment in cinema. However, if Superman e Batman show their strength and relevance, the reading becomes another and it may be that we see a key turn in this scale of power in Hollywood.
And from what we’ve seen so far, there seems to be a certain amount of goodwill and enthusiasm on the part of the public for the DCU. All the announcements were very celebrated and it is very likely that this air of novelty will attract the attention of both comic book fans and those who are not willing to watch another 40 films before going to the cinema.
Two video games on time?
Another major factor we should keep an eye on in 2025 is how Hollywood will treat video game adaptations. After decades of being treated like factories of failures, it seems that the studios finally hit the hand and, little by little, we see games giving life to successful films and series.
the phenomenon The Last of Us it could be a game changer in that sense and it’s quite likely that we’ll see a second season appearing as early as 2025 with an even more mature and impressive new story. More than that, all the noise caused by this first part should make not only HBO, but other producers look for popular franchises to take advantage of the good moment.
If hero movies are really heading towards their twilight, it may be that game adaptations will be their replacement in movie theaters. And, in this case, they have a nice differential that is much more attractive to money holders: unlike superheroes, who have a more homogeneous audience, games can target different types of audiences.
the coming Super Mario Bros: The Movie is a fine example of that. At the same time that everyone is moved by the harshness of the screenplay of The Last of Us, there is another portion of the public anxiously awaiting the arrival of Nintendo’s mascot animation, which will come with a much more childish tone. And, in the midst of all this, there will be those people who will consume everything that comes their way.
This makes this market very promising and, depending on how the studios move from this year onwards, 2025 could prove to be quite prolific in this regard. And although it is too early to say that the year will be a turning point and the apex of movies and game series, it may be that it marks the beginning of this new phase.
