If there is one area of Disney that you would assume doesn’t fall into the “cost-cutting” category, Marvel Studios would be the one. As the biggest franchise in the world, with several of the biggest movies ever under its belt and many of the most-watch streaming debuts on the Disney+ platform to boot, it seemed like 2023 would bring another super wave of superheroes to both the big and small screen. However, it appears that there could be some breaks being applied to the runaway train of the MCU, with new reports suggesting that of the five-plus TV shows said to land on Disney+ this year from Marvel Studios, only two are currently guaranteed.
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According to The Hollywood Reporter, following comments made by CEO Bob Iger about how he wanted to be a “better curator” of the content being put out by Disney, Marvel Studios could be pushing back a number of their imminent Disney+ series to spend more time working on them in post-production. This means that shows such as Echo, Ironheart, Agatha: Coven of Chaos, and even the animated What If…? Season 2 may not arrive until much later than initially planned, and according to sources, only Loki season 2 and Secret Invasion are sure to arrive this year.

The report goes on to quote an insider as saying that there will be “a level of rigor on Marvel and across the entire company. Numbers matter now, and costs are going to be outlined and enforced.” These comments come just days after an Entertainment Weekly interview with Marvel boss Kevin Feige quoted him as saying that “the pace at which we’re putting out the Disney+ shows will change.” This could mean, unlike the continuous stream of new shows every 2-3 months seen in the last couple of years, it could now become maybe three series a year.

Related: Kevin Feige Addresses Claims That the MCU Is Too Sprawling for New Fans to Get Involved in

What Does This Mean for Marvel Series Already In Production?

Several of the shows that were originally set to be released in 2023 are already in or at the end of filming. So it looks like those shows will now have extra time spent on them to get them right rather than face the barrage of complaints about “jarring CGI” and “VFX inconsistencies” that have plagued several shows. It will also probably stop many Marvel series from premiering their first episodes while the finale is still being worked on, which happened with Loki’s first season.

Marvel Studios have some big projects coming up, with the 18-episode Daredevil: Born Again being their most extensive Disney+ offering by far. While the show may be much more grounded and less in need of excessive amounts of special effects like She-Hulk: Attorney at Law or Secret Invasion, the undertaking of such a series is huge, so not having an excessive amount of simultaneous projects being worked on together could be necessary. How this will impact the overall Marvel slate is not yet clear, but with three movies and potentially only 2 or 3 series being released, it seems that this is a time of taking stock that many didn’t see coming.