When it was announced back in 2014, Inhumans was slated to release in 2018 as a part of Marvel’s Phase 3 in between the two-part Avengers: Infinity War. However, the welcomed addition of Spider-Man: Homecoming , Paul Rudd’s Ant Man sequel, and Captain Marvel have left Phase 3 a bit overcrowded. After the Inhumans release date was pushed back into 2019, Marvel finally just axed it from the schedule entirely.
Although Kevin Feige confirms Marvel has no plans to scrap the project, the Marvel Studios head also flat out said he’s not sure how far down Inhumans will shuffle in the release schedule. During an Empire Film podcast , Feige clarified those comments.
“The only situation right now is that [Inhumans] is not gonna be a part of Phase 3 because Phase 3 increased in a very good way since we initially announced. When and where and how it pops up remains to be seen, but it’s characters we love, it’s a storyline we love, and we just didn’t want to cram it into an already quite full Phase 3.”
Marvel may be saving Inhumans to open Phase 4 once the Thanos storyline wraps up in the soon-to-be retitled two-part Infinity War. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Russo brothers introduced a few inhumans in Infinity War seeing their strong tie to S.H.I.E.L.D., the creative team’s access to nearly 70 characters and the intention of putting secondary story arcs in the spotlight.
In addition to the 9 Marvel films slated to release between now and mid-2019, Feige must also consider the blossoming X-Men franchise when choosing a release date. After X-Men: Apocalypse, Fox has a few spinoffs planned that would be prime competition for Inhumans. With New Mutants and X-Force on the way, it may be in Marvel’s best interest to guarantee Inhumans makes a huge, memorable mark at the start of Phase 4 in 2020 in order to really stick it to Fox. Both subspecies were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and inhumans are essentially Marvel/ Disney’s mutants. There are few key differences between inhumans and mutants.
Inhumans are descendents of the ancient alien race, the Kree. Their powers are the result of experiments and the process of Terrigenesis, which unlocks each inhuman’s unique special power. Mutants have a similar origin. Millions of years ago, an alien race called The Celestials came to earth and completed genetic experiments that altered human’s genetic code. Passed down with each generation, a mutant possess the X-gene that will give them powers during puberty. While the mutant race spread themselves across the world to blend into society, inhumans created a secret society and secluded themselves for protection.
We’ve met countless of X-Men’s mutants on the big screen, but not so many inhumans. If you haven't read the comics, you probably haven't heard of even the most popular characters (like Guardians of the Galaxy two years ago). Considering Feige's comments, it’s going to be awhile until we meet Black Bolt, Medusa, Karnak, Gorgon, and the rest of the Inhuman royal family. For now, catch a handful of Marvel's inhuman characters on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D's, which is currently exploring the secret warriors story arc with Daisy Johnson (aka Quake) taking the lead against the ultimate inhuman, Hive. Captain America: Civil War kicked off Phase 3, and if Inhumans becomes the next saga of the MCU, it’ll be worth the wait.
Doctor Strange / Nov. 4
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 / May 5, 2017
Spider-Man: Homecoming / July 7, 2017
Thor: Ragnorak / Nov. 3, 2017
Black Panther / Feb. 16, 2018
Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 / May 4, 2018
Ant Man and the Wasp / July 6, 2018
Captain Marvel / March 8, 2019
Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 / May 3, 2019
