It’s no secret that Destin had his hands full in Marvel. On the back of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, he was hired to do a sequel to Shang-Chi, Wonder Man (Disney+ series), and Kang Dynasty.
Deadline reports that the reason he’s stepped aside is due to the above-mentioned and having his hands full. He remains part of Marvel and is in talks to direct future projects.
Destin was part of the huge success of the first Shang-Chi movie so it does make sense Marvel would want him on more projects moving forward.
Whilst this does feel like a small step back for Kang Dynasty, we have to remember the movie is far from the pre-production phase yet.
Kang Dynasty has been pushed back due to the strikes. Originally planned to be released on May 2nd, 2025 – it is now slated to be released on May 1st, 2026. Secret Wars will now follow this and release on May 7th, 2027.
There is plenty of time for Marvel to get a new Director in and I just hope it’s someone who sticks with the project and makes it work. By the time Kang Dynasty rolls around, it will have been 7 years between Avengers films with Endgame releasing in 2019.
This has also happened amid several rumored reports that Marvel is backing away from Jonathan Majors due to ongoing legal battles. This remains to be seen if Marvel will continue with Majors, recast, or go with a whole new villain. Jonathan has done fantastic in his time as Kang so I hope this is something that he can get sorted quickly otherwise a recast would be the best step moving forward.
It’s still an exciting time moving forward for Marvel as there is a lot to come. We have the Avengers films, the Spider-Man new trilogy, Fantastic Four, X-Men, Deadpool and so much more. It may feel like Marvel has dropped the ball at this moment in time but I fully believe they will come through. Deadpool will be a fantastic start next year and we cannot wait for it.