10 Things To Expect From Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 3

3. Captain Marvel (July 6, 2018)

Despite Scarlett Johansson being one of the most popular actresses in the business, not to mention the fact that her ass-kicking turn as the title character helped drive Lucy to over $400m at the box office this summer, Black Widow still isn't getting her own solo movie anytime soon. No, the honor of being the first female superhero to headline their own feature in the Marvel Cinematic Universe falls to Carol Danvers, better known as Captain Marvel. Danvers had previously been known as Ms. Marvel before taking on the gender-neutral title of 'Captain' back in 2012, and the following year it was rumored that Marvel had been working on a script based on the character, although there had been no movement on the project at all until yesterday's announcement, despite Kevin Feige's insistence that a female-led entry in the MCU was in the pipeline. So what does the introduction of Captain Marvel mean for the studio's increasingly broad mythology? Well, Feige described the character as 'earthbound and cosmic', as well as describing Carol Danvers as 'one of, if not the most powerful character in the MCU', which could lead many to believe she could very well play a small-yet-vital role in the culmination of Phase 3. So far, Marvel Studios have kept their Earthbound and cosmic characters entirely separate, and the public declaration that Captain Marvel is both leads to the interesting possibility that she will show up just in time to help out her fellow superheroes in Avengers: Infinity War Part II. Part I could see Earth's Mightiest Heroes hopelessly outnumbered and overrun, Captain Marvel's standalone movie could both introduce the character to general audiences and end with her answering a distress call from Earth, and Feige's comment on how powerful the character is could make her a vital ally for the Avengers in the final battle against Thanos. Of course, this is all just speculation but it is about time that Marvel took a chance on a female-driven, effects-heavy superhero movie given the studio's refusal to rest on their laurels.