For years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe thrived on the idea that every movie mattered to a larger whole. Miss one chapter, and you risk being lost by the time the next Avengers movie event hits theaters. That approach once felt exciting and ambitious but, lately, the interconnectivity of every MCU movie has started to feel more like homework. With Marvel heading into a make-or-break stretch, one analyst has argued Marvel needs to make a bold shift and, honestly, it’s hard to disagree.
That argument came up in a recent industry deep dive published by The Wrap, which examined why the 2026 movie schedule could either stabilize the MCU or push it further into trouble. In the piece, analyst Dave Gonzales pointed to the franchise’s lingering issue of relentless commitment to interconnectivity. According to him, Marvel might be better off letting go of that burden altogether. He says:
