'Avengers: The Kang Dynasty' taps 'Shang-Chi' director Destin Daniel Cretton for next Marvel team-up

Fresh off its massive slate of announcements at San Diego Comic-Con this past weekend, Marvel Studios continues to dominate pop culture headlines with a major hire for the penultimate installment of its current "Multiverse Saga." According to a new report from Variety, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director and co-writer, Destin Daniel Cretton, will direct Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which is slated for a wide theatrical bow on May 2, 2025.

Cretton, who currently enjoys an overall creative deal with Marvel, is also developing a Shang-Chi sequel and a Wonder Man television series for Disney+. Specific plot details on The Kang Dynasty are currently under wraps, but odds are good the crossover project will loosely follows the events of the comic book storyline of the same name. Avengers: Secret Wars (based on another indelible arc) will open in November of the same year. No director has been announced for the final epic chapter of Phase 6, and while the Russo Brothers (co-directors of Infinity War and Endgame) have voiced interest, Marvel Cinematic Universe architect Kevin Feige has stated that the sibling filmmakers are not involved.

Despite the fact that Kang the Conquerer has not yet appeared on the big screen, the MCU's next Thanos-level big bad was already teed up as a bellicose variant of Time Variance Authority founder, He Who Remains (played by Lovecraft Country alum Jonathan Majors) in the Season 1 finale of Loki. The time-traveling and multiverse-subjugating conqueror is set to make his first appearance in next year's Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he will also be played by Majors. All the actor could tease on the Hall H stage at SDCC was this: "There will be conquering."

Starring Simu Liu in the title role, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was almost universally hailed by audiences and set a new Labor Day box office record once it hit theaters last September. The financial and critical success of the movie prompted Marvel Studios and Hulu's Onyx Collective to sign a multi-faceted production deal with Cretton, who shares Ten Rings screenplay credit with David Callaham and Andrew Lanham. 

“Destin is an amazing collaborator who brought a unique perspective and skill to Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings. We had a fantastic time working together on the film and he has so many intriguing ideas for stories to bring to life on Disney+, so we’re thrilled to expand our relationship with him and can’t wait to get started,” Feige said at the time.

Cretton — whose non-comic book resume includes Short Term 12, The Glass Castle, and Just Mercy — voiced his excitement over the opportunity to "explore new stories and build new worlds with this community."

The MCU's next outing, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, officially premieres on Disney+ Wednesday, Aug. 17.

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