The first new hero in Marvel’s future Avengers lineup was just confirmed

• Marvel movies and TV shows might be delayed, but Marvel keeps working on the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
• MCU Phase 4 will begin a new storyline now that Avengers: Endgame concluded the Infinity Saga. Marvel will introduce new superheroes who will join the Avengers as well as new villains.
• A new report says Marvel has found one of its upcoming superheroes, the actress who will play She-Hulk in upcoming new movies and Disney+ series.

It’s still too early to say whether we’re getting any Marvel movies or TV shows this year. Black Widow should be released in early November, but Disney might delay the premiere again since the novel coronavirus pandemic is still out of control. WandaVision appears to be the only MCU Phase 4 TV series that Disney is promoting for a 2020 launch on Disney+. There’s no official announcement on the matter and it’s unclear whether another Black Widow delay would also impact the rollout of Marvel’s Disney+ TV shows. We may have to wait a long while to enjoy the first elements of the new Phase 4 storyline, but Marvel is working behind the scenes on several upcoming productions. The latest development is proof of that, as we finally know the actress who will play one of the new superheroes who joins the rebuilt Avengers team.

What’s interesting about Phase 4 is that there won’t be any Avengers 5 movie since it’s way too soon for another installment in the Avengers franchise. The world is rebuilding after Endgame, and the Avengers must lick their wounds and recover after the last battle against Thanos. Black Widow and Iron Man died. Steve Rogers retired. Thor is off-world finding purpose. Hawkeye and Hulk alone can’t get the job done — and everyone else is scattered in the aftermath of Endgame.

Marvel can’t just add new team members, nor can the studio introduce new villains and expect the same success as the previous films in the Avengers series. That’s why Phase 4 will serve as a reboot of the MCU now the Infinity Saga story is over. New characters will join the universe, superheroes and villains alike. And the list will include characters from the Fantastic Four and X-Men franchises that Disney now controls.

Marvel already revealed some of the new superheroes who will be introduced in the MCU in the coming years, without saying who will play them. But a new report claims Marvel cast its next Avenger. Variety has learned that Tatiana Maslany is close to a deal to play the lead role of Jennifer Walters, or She-Hulk, of course.

Walters is Bruce Banner’s cousin, and she gets his Hulk powers through a blood transfusion. Unlike the first version of Hulk, She-Hulk manages to retain Walters’s intelligence and personality. So this new hero is akin to “Professor Hulk,” who we got to see in Endgame. She-Hulk is the replacement for Hulk, one of the original Avengers whose character arc doesn’t feel quite complete. Mark Ruffalo is expected to play Banner/Hulk in future Marvel attractions, and She-Hulk is the most obvious production where we’d expect to see the actor.

We still don’t know much about the She-Hulk TV series that will hit Disney+. Marvel has yet to announce Maslany’s casting or whether Ruffalo is attached to the project. We have no idea when She-Hulk will start production, let alone premiere on Disney+. With the way things are going right now, there’s no way to predict when Marvel will start shooting the show. If Marvel movies are delayed for a few more months, we’d also expect Marvel TV series to continue to slip, She-Hulk included.