The Town with Matthew Belloni ‘Fantastic Four’ Pressure, Marvel’s Next Steps, and Kevin Feige’s Future
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Jul 23, 2025 
Ben Fritz, a Wall Street Journal entertainment reporter and Marvel Comics historian, joins to discuss the intense pressure on 'The Fantastic Four' as Marvel faces superhero fatigue. They analyze Marvel's recent struggles with content oversaturation and fan disengagement, as well as Kevin Feige's role moving forward. The conversation touches on the significance of star power in casting and the contrasting positions of Marvel and DC in the evolving superhero landscape. Predictions for the upcoming film's box office performance add an intriguing twist!
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Marvel's MCU Strategic Shift
- The Fantastic Four film marks a post-pandemic shift with standalone content and less MCU interconnectedness.
- Marvel aims to combat superhero fatigue by producing fewer, quality movies and disconnected TV shows.
Marvel's Content Overload Problem
- Marvel's extensive content output caused audience fatigue and quality decline in early 2020s.
- Kevin Feige faces immense pressure to turn Marvel's fortunes around with Fantastic Four.
Disney Admits Marvel Overproduction
- Disney publicly admits Marvel made too much content, pledging to create fewer, more standalone titles.
- This move is to make Marvel easier to follow and rejuvenate interest.