Marvel's Phase 4 may set up an Avengers vs X-Men crossover based on the 'House of M' comic book plotline
Marvel Studios may look at following the hugely successful Infinity Saga template again for Phase 4. 'Avengers: Endgame' hinted at new beginnings and that would be one of the reasons behind the notable absence of another Avengers movie in the upcoming stage.
A recent report by We Got This Covered' said an Avengers vs X-Men movie was being reportedly planned and "is on the cards". However, it will be a wait as the movie could only be pieced together after Phase 5 and released presumably by the end of Phase 6.
An epic crossover may exactly be what we need. Here's a look at what's happening on that crossover front.
Phase 4 will pretty much round up some story arcs and leave the door wide open for new characters to appear in the MCU. There are new entrants in 'Shang Chi' and 'Eternals' and it is obvious they'll have a role to play in the formation of the new Avengers.
The site's report also reads: "The X-Men need to be introduced into the MCU first and the studio also wants to form the New Avengers team (Black Panther, Spider-Man, Blade, Shang-Chi, Jane Foster’s Thor, Scarlet Witch, etc.) before they arrive at a full-blown crossover movie like Avengers vs. X-Men. We’ve been told that there’ll be some minor crossovers ahead of the film though and that various post-credits scenes will plant the seeds for when the two teams finally meet."
At this stage, it is safe to assume that Phase 5 may be about the X-Men. The upcoming phase also presents a new path for the existing Avengers and it may somehow tie-in when the Avengers vs X-Men movie hits the screens.
Word on the street is that the movie would be based on the 'House of M' storyline. The comic is a bit on the complicated side when it comes to explaining the plot as it involves characters like Cap, Luke Cage, Iron Man, and Wolverine who are not exactly in the thick of action anymore. However, the plotline makes sense since Wanda Maximoff aka the Scarlet Witch is still alive and will be the main character if 'House of M' is followed.
'House of M' is a 2005 comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics and is an eight-issue comic book series. It follows the Scarlet Witch as she suffers a mental breakdown and tries to fabricate reality to recreate her lost children. In the process, things change drastically for both the X-Men and the Avengers.
Coming back to the Avengers vs X-Men crossover, it makes sense to have a movie that would see the two superhero groups make an appearance together on-screen. Right now, we can only speculate if Marvel decides to reboot the X-Men franchise and re-introduce some old characters who are pivotal to the 'House of M' plot (assuming they don't throw a surprise and switch to something else).
It is also safe to assume that the mini-series too will contribute to setting up the epic crossover. In Phase 4, it is interesting to see how 'WandaVision' pans out. There's also the 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' movie that may open the portal to the crossover.
Simply put, everything's up in the air, but if this is the blueprint that Marvel already has in place, the Avengers vs X-Men crossover may just be what we need with new characters foraying into the MCU.
'Avengers: Endgame' was a blast. Hopefully, Marvel can take it up a whole notch and make this crossover bigger and better.