Marvel Cinematic Universe: Every Upcoming Film Ranked By Anticipation

To say that 2016 has been a big year for the Marvel Cinematic Universe would be an understatement. Solely in the context of the film side of the franchise, Captain America: Civil War released this summer with showers of praise from critics and fans alike before going on to become the highest grossing movie of the year, while the newly-released Doctor Strange is set to follow suit, already earning love on its way to bringing in what will undoubtedly be yet another healthy financial haul for Marvel Studios.

Since this whole juggernaut launched back in 2008, the whole endeavor has only gotten bigger and bigger, and this year alone has introduced characters like Strange, Black Panther, and Spider-Man to keep the franchise going long after characters like Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor begin to retire or take a backseat, with numerous sequels, origin stories, and big team-up events slated for years to come. While Marvel has their stakes in the ground for 2020 and beyond, the identities of those projects remain wisely unannounced, with the sole focus for now resting on those films that have been revealed up through 2019.

Across four sequels and three solo outings, the next few years of the MCU has a lot in store for fans to look forward to, and with the success of Doctor Strange once again bolstering up the hype for what's to come, let's take a mildly spoiler-filled look to the future to sort out which films are worth getting most excited about...

Release Date: July 6, 2018

Between his debut in last year's Ant-Man and his small role in this year's Captain America: Civil War, Paul Rudd's Scott Lang has earned himself a legion of fans and a rightful place in the MCU. Though many were wondering ahead of his solo debut's release whether it would work, considering the creative shakeups that saw Edgar Wright leave its production and the fact it was trying to market a hero called Ant-Man to the general public, it's hard to deny it was a success, making it a no-brainer that a sequel was announced for 2018.

The mid-credits scene of Ant-Man teased Evangeline Lily's Hope van Dyne picking up the mantle of The Wasp, and while some were disappointed she didn't show up in Civil War alongside Scott, everyone involved has agreed that, if they had crammed her in, it would've done a disservice to the character. They're right. The Wasp is a character many fans have been dying to see come to life, and director Peyton Reed recently described the sequel as her "coming out party," which is nothing less than she deserves.

While story details haven't leaked, nor do we know exactly how Scott and Hope will fit into the third and fourth Avengers films - the sequel, along with Captain Marvel, are the only two films sandwiched between them - no one will be surprised if the film also explores the other Ant-Man and Wasp, Hank Pym and the MIA Janet van Dyne, picking up threads left open by the first film. Beyond that, Michael Douglas and the scene-stealing Michael Peña are set to return as well, but with so much coming out between now and July 2018 that we know more about, it'll be awhile before the focus turns towards it and the excitement levels truly begin to rise.