Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has finally answered one of the biggest questions surrounding Avengers: Secret Wars, and his response may disappoint fans who believed the film would wipe the slate clean.
Speaking with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Feige confirmed that Secret Wars will not serve as a full Marvel reboot despite years of speculation.
“No,” Feige said when asked directly whether the MCU would reboot after Secret Wars.
Instead, he explained that Marvel is looking to Jonathan Hickman’s Secret Wars comic as inspiration for what comes next.
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“I look to the comics, as I always do, in terms of our storytelling,” he said. “In both the Secret Wars—but particularly the Hickman Secret Wars from 10 years ago—there’s a nice roadmap to where we can go.”
Those comments appear to put an end to one of the MCU’s most persistent fan theories.
Why So Many Fans Wanted a Marvel Reboot
For years, many Marvel fans viewed Secret Wars as the perfect opportunity to begin again.
Unlike DC, Marvel has never rebooted its cinematic universe. Since Iron Man debuted in 2008, every film has existed within the same continuity.
Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday – Marvel Entertainment, YouTube
That continuity has become increasingly difficult to maintain following Avengers: Endgame. Dozens of Disney+ series, multiple timelines, variants, and multiverse storylines have created an ever-expanding web of continuity that casual audiences have struggled to follow.
At the same time, Marvel has attempted to replace many of the heroes who defined the Infinity Saga.
The Post-Endgame Lineup Hasn’t Connected Like the Original Avengers
While Marvel has introduced dozens of new heroes since 2019, few have generated the same enthusiasm as Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Natasha Romanoff, Thor, Bruce Banner, or Clint Barton.
Some characters have found dedicated audiences, but many of Marvel’s legacy replacements have struggled to produce the same level of excitement—or the same box office results—as the heroes who built the franchise.
That has led many fans to argue that a complete Marvel reboot would have been the cleanest solution.
Reed Richards in Avengers: Doomsday – Marvel Entertainment, YouTube
A fresh universe could have reintroduced younger versions of Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, and the Hulk while giving audiences a chance to experience those characters alongside the X-Men and Fantastic Four from the very beginning.
Rather than beginning Marvel’s First Family with a middle-aged Reed Richards, for example, Marvel could have started with younger versions of Reed, Sue, Johnny, and Ben capable of anchoring the franchise for another decade or longer.
Likewise, the new X-Men cast could have entered a brand-new universe instead of being folded into an MCU already approaching two decades of continuity.
Hickman’s Secret Wars Doesn’t Actually Erase Everything
Feige’s comments also reveal something important about Marvel’s plans.
Jonathan Hickman’s 2015 Secret Wars wasn’t a traditional reboot.
Instead, the event destroyed the multiverse before rebuilding it into a streamlined Marvel Universe. Characters like Miles Morales survived and became part of the primary continuity, while Marvel largely preserved its history instead of erasing it.
Magneto in the Avengers: Doomsday trailer – Marvel Entertainment, YouTube
If Marvel Studios follows that blueprint, audiences shouldn’t expect Secret Wars to erase everything that came before.
Instead, the film may simply merge timelines, incorporate mutants and other legacy characters into one universe, and move forward from there.
That would make the MCU cleaner—but not truly new.
Can Marvel Regain the Momentum It Lost?
Whether that’s enough remains the biggest question facing Marvel Studios.
The MCU has experienced far more inconsistent audience reception since Endgame than it did during the Infinity Saga. Projects like Eternals, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and Captain America: Brave New World all received mixed-to-negative reactions, while several Disney+ series have struggled to generate lasting interest.
For fans hoping Marvel would use Secret Wars to completely reset the board, Feige’s comments suggest that opportunity has passed.
Robert Downey Jr. at the Avengers Doomsday cast reveal – YouTube, IGN
Instead of beginning again with a reboot, Marvel appears determined to keep building on the same cinematic universe it started nearly 20 years ago.
Whether audiences are ready for another decade in that continuity—or whether they would have embraced a genuine fresh start instead—is a question that Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars will ultimately have to answer.
Do you think Marvel needs a reboot? Sound off and let us know!
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