Every superhero has an origin story: the initial event that sets the hero on a path to greatness. For the so-called Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the most consistently high-performing brand in movies of the past 15 years, it was 2008’s Iron Man. Starring Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark and his heroic persona, Iron Man was a hit. From then through 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, Marvel put forth a dizzying array of interconnected movies, with the characters jumping in and out of one another’s flicks and occasionally crossing over en masse. And it worked: The 32 movies made almost $30 billion worldwide. The few misfires and middling results along the way were largely forgiven, swept up in the seemingly unstoppable momentum of the franchise.
Every superhero also faces challenges — and a villain (typically a dark mirror of the hero). Now, Marvel itself faces serious challenges to its own success, and they come from the only source that could defeat it: itself.
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