Usually, studios provide theaters with roughly 90 days of exclusivity before releasing films through other means. With Universal Pictures now defying that norm, this could potentially lead to long term issues for theaters. Will moviegoers want to give up the convenience of their own home? After all, home theater set-ups have improved substantially and it seems harder and harder to find a venue with patrons not on their phones or talking to one another.

After a few months of social distancing, new habits will form. Once loyal theatergoers may begin to shun going out for the latest films and embrace a simpler and more personal experience. Home set-ups may never truly match the screen and sound quality of a decent theater, but how good is good enough? Is the pure spectacle of it all still a strong draw? Or are Universal’s actions another nail in the traditional theater system’s coffin?

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No one expected Iron Man to experience the staggering success it did, much less the cinematic universe it would spawn. 21 films later Marvel has thoroughly proved the world wrong. Those first few films were a massive gamble for the financially struggling company, but boy did they pay off. Even though there were some duds along the way, Marvel kept on marching and improving.

No one remembers the mediocrity of Thor: The Dark World or The Incredible Hulk at this point. No, those disappointments have been washed away by the overwhelming sense of wonder comicbook fans have experienced since 2008. By now, you could even say they contribute to the charm of the first phase.

Doing something no one else has ever done represents true greatness. It does not matter that none of their films are Best Picture worthy. Rather, the sheer scale of their universe deserves an award of its own. In all these years, no copycat has reached near the same success. Marvel stands alone in its accomplishment, and now looks to see how far it can run up the score.

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MARVEL hosts arguably the largest panel at Comic-Con in the famous Hall H. With such high expectations to live up to, especially considering Endgame’s success, they came prepared this year. Revealing their Phase 4 slate, Marvel announced Eternals, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Black Widow. Black Panther 2, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, Captain Marvel 2, The Fantastic Four, Mutants (X-Men), and Blade were also name dropped.

Eternals packs some serious star power. The cast includes Angelina Jolie, Ma Dong-Seok, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, and Salma Hayek. Following a group of immortals, Eternals promises to explore the human condition in another cosmic setting. Wrangling together such talent in such an out-there concept just goes to show the power of the Marvel brand at this point.

Shang-Chi’s presentation opened with a sizzle reel of all of the Ten Ring gang’s subtle appearances throughout the MCU so far. This leads one to believe the gang may play a larger role in Phase 4 than previously thought. The promise of the real Mandarin also piques interest, as he’s a pretty big villain to only end up making a single appearance.

The Multiverse of Madness promises to deliver the MCU’s first film with horror elements. Combining the trippy nature of the first Doctor Strange with a scarier tone would be a great mix-up for the series. Scarlet Witch’s tie-in is the cherry on top.

Perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the whole event, Kevin Feige managed to get Natalie Portman back as female Thor for Love and Thunder, after she previously swore off the franchise.

For those dying to get back into theaters, Black Widow releases first on May 1, 2020. Follow Natasha during the period between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War when she finds herself on the run.

After all of the big news, hearing Feige rattle of The Fantastic Four and Mutants sent the crowd into a frenzy. The previously Fox owned properties find themselves back with their creators, and the future looks promising for the pair (and The Mouse’s pockets). To end the show, Mahershala Ali came on-stage to announce Blade. So the MCU has vampires now. Nice.

Anyone who predicted Marvel would slow down after Avengers: Endgame might want to double check their analysis, because Marvel certainly plans to stay around for quite a while.

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Studio Ghibli’s vault of excellent films has never officially released in the Chinese market. If this recent opening weekend is any indication, more of these films may soon find themselves in Chinese theaters.

A generation grew up watching Ghibli films on bootleg DVD’s and now they have an opportunity to directly support the creators; sharing a beloved experience with children of their own. Hopefully we see the rest of the Studio Ghibli catalog make an appearance.

Tell us what you think about this surprising (?) Spirited Away box office development below.

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It seems Disney really wants to beat Avatar at the box office, but this weak offering might not have the draw to do it. The introduction, tribute, and deleted scene will pop up on YouTube within an hour, and the sneak peak doesn’t offer much when you can wait four days for the full release.

Endgame currently (as of June 25th, 2019) needs roughly $38M to surpass Avatar for the title of highest grossing film of all time. With this last push it will come down to the wire.

Tell us what you think of these Avengers: Endgame rerelease details and how you think this will play out below.

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