It may be a while before the MCU gets around to fixing the X-Men or Fantastic Four

The Disney/Fox merger ostensibly offers the possibility of introducing characters from the X-Men and Fantastic Four movies into the MCU. But since both of those franchises have failed to get much traction lately (with Dark Phoenix being the most recent disappointment), how is Disney planning to utilize these characters to reach their full potential?

The Playlist reports that in a conversation with Fandango, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige reveals that while no definite decisions have been made yet, a lot of possibilities exist, as “he’s treating the X-Men and Fantastic Four characters as he would any of the other hundreds of characters he has in his stable.” He says, “oftentimes it just comes down to a specific character in a specific story and a specific way to introduce them,” citing Spider-Man and Black Panther’s successful introductions in Captain America: Civil War versus Iron Man and Ant-Man getting their own movies right out of the gate. He continues:

“It’s still early days, but it’s been a fun exercise, and it’s one, by the way, that we’ve been doing for years… Every development meeting starts with cool ideas and fun ideas, and our wheels are always turning in terms of what if… to use a Marvel publishing term.”

No matter what storyline Marvel eventually lands on, don’t hold your breath waiting for that Avengers/X-Men mashup, as The Playlist stresses that “we’re still years away from this becoming a reality.” But given the profitability of comic book-based movies, we’re bound to get there eventually, be it a Wolverine cameo in a Spider-Man movie or Captain Marvel in a flight race with the Human Torch. Hopefully Feige and Marvel can keep in mind the hits and misses from the efforts that preceded the merger: X-Men: First Class = good. Dark Phoenix = Not good.