In terms of standalone franchises, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has always tended to operate by the rule of three, with Chris Hemsworth’s Thor: Love and Thunder looking to be the exception that proves the rule.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Chris Evans’ Captain America both got trilogies, while James Gunn admitted a long time ago that he has no plans to stick around the Guardians of the Galaxy series after Vol. 3 is released, and if you view Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame as two halves of one whole, then Earth’s Mightiest Heroes also wrapped up their arc in three parts.
Elsewhere, Spider-Man: No Way Home will conclude the storyline that began in Homecoming and while it hasn’t been confirmed yet, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania could be the end of the line for Scott Lang as a leading man, given that his onscreen daughter is a key member of the Young Avengers and when the movie arrives next year, Paul Rudd will be 53 years old, making him the oldest star to ever take top billing in an MCU solo outing.
That’s why it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we’ve heard from our sources – the same ones who told us the project was in development long before it was recently announced – that tentative plans are in place for Anthony Mackie’s Captain America to get three films of his own, continuing the trend that’s served the MCU so well over the last thirteen years.
It’s the beginning of an exciting new era for the shield-throwing superhero, and Mackie has been patiently biding his time to suit up in his star-spangled finest, so it stands to reason Marvel are keen to see how high he can fly as Captain America across a multi-film journey.
