The Multiverse Already Told You Who Should Make Avengers: Secret Wars

The MCU could use a multiversal refresh à la Everything Everywhere All at Once's Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert to top off its Multiverse Saga.

Though Marvel has yet to announce the directors of the upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars, the multiverse has already given clues about the perfect fit. At this weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige announced the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 5 and 6 timelines and confirmed they will conclude the newly titled Multiverse Saga. The saga is set to culminate with two new Avengers movies in May and November 2025: Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, respectively.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton is set to helm The Kang Dynasty, but Marvel has not yet confirmed a director for Secret Wars. At SDCC, Feige noted Avengers alumni, the Russo Brothers, will not be returning for the Kang Dynasty-Secret Wars culmination of the Multiverse Saga. However, there’s already another directing duo who would be more than qualified to take the reins.

Though Marvel has historically hired former MCU directors (i.e. the Russo Brothers and Cretton) to work on Avengers movies, the studio would be unwise not to seriously consider Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the directors of Everything Everywhere All at Once, for the Secret Wars position. Kwan and Scheinert, a directorial duo known as Daniels, are notable for their two feature film collaborations with A24: Swiss Army Man and Everything Everywhere All at Once. Daniels also wrote both works, which masterfully balance humor with heart. Since the MCU’s trademark banter elevates its tragic storylines, Marvel should hire creatives who know how to toe the line between comedy and cheesiness—especially for an installment as emotionally (and commercially) significant as Secret Wars.

Everything Everywhere All At Once Proves Daniels’ Directing Style Is A Perfect MCU Fit

The Daniels’ work on Everything Everywhere All at Once‘s multiverse makes them especially qualified to lead Secret Wars. Everything Everywhere All at Once was a highly successful multiverse movie grounded in themes of family and forgiveness, not unlike many MCU movies. In this standalone film, they developed a complex set of multiversal rules that enhanced the well-paced narrative brimming with creativity. In an entertainment industry oversaturated with spinoffs and sequels piggybacking off the success of previous works—a business strategy the MCU absolutely profits from—Everything Everywhere All at Once’s daring approach and originality is a breath of fresh air. The film was released nearly back-to-back with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the MCU’s most in-depth foray into parallel universes, and Daniels’ film puts the MCU’s multiverse to shame. The MCU could use a multiversal refresh à la Daniels to top off its Multiverse Saga.

However, even if the MCU broke its habit of hiring previous MCU directors for Avengers movies and took a risk on Daniels for Avengers: Secret Wars, Kwan and Scheinert might not be interested. In an April 2022 interview, Daniels said they’re “so tired of the multiverse” post-Everything Everywhere All at Once and would prefer to pursue their own, smaller projects as opposed to big-budget MCU films where directors have less creative leeway (via Rotten Tomatoes)—a restriction that may only increase following audience ambivalence toward the stylistic MCU Phase 4 installments. Daniels are A24 indie darlings through and through—a likely loss for Marvel, but perhaps a win for moviegoers at large. Still, if Marvel wanted daring behind the camera for their epic Avengers film, they’d be wise to at least bring the Daniels in for a meeting.