After four years of rumors, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally moving forward with a Nova movie, and this offers Marvel a perfect launching point for its next MCU saga. The news on Nova is that Marvel has decided to make it into an actual theatrical release rather than a Disney+ special or a streaming series. This is big news, and it could mean big things for what is coming to one corner of the Marvel movie universe. While the main Marvel movies are likely to set up the mutant saga on Earth, Marvel also teased some big plans for the cosmic side, and Nova could set up that storyline perfectly.

The Nova movie could open up the cosmic side again following the end of the Guardians of the Galaxy’s run, and finally set into motion the events that could lead to the arrival of Annihilation and the Annihilation Wave.

The MCU Can Use Nova to Branch Away From Earth for Different Storylines

The original plans were much smaller for Nova. At the start, the rumors were that Marvel would bring in Nova as one of the Disney+ specials, similar to Werewolf by Night. The idea was that it might bring in Richard Ryder as a Nova Corps member and also introduce Sam Alexander as the youngster on Earth who would also become a Nova thanks to finding his dad’s old helmet. This could then finally introduce Richard, who never showed up in any of the Nova Corps appearances in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, and then add a new young Earth-based hero that could be part of the Young Avengers or Champions lineup with people like Ms. Marvel, Kate Bishop, and Wiccan. Having it on Disney+ seemed like the best place for this corner of the Marvel Universe.

Things have changed in the MCU, and since Marvel wants to move Nova to the big screen, it seems they might have bigger plans for the cosmic hero. It is likely to end up spending some time on Earth, or maybe starting there, and it could still tease Sam taking on the role of a version of Nova. However, having it on a higher level makes it sound like there might be more plans for the cosmic world, which Marvel has already teased. It could bring back several characters, including the new Guardians of the Galaxy seen at the end of their third movie, and possibly the Eternals that were sent into space at the end of their movie.

It could also bring back Chris Pratt and allow Nova and Star-Lord to have the bromance that Marvel Comics so perfectly showed over the years. Finally, it could give the Fantastic Four something to do if the Earth-based stories are more centered on the X-Men and the mutants. Black Panther 3 is also supposed to deal with a cosmic threat as well, so it could all tie in together. However, at the end, the entire idea of bringing Nova into the MCU as a major movie could be a great chance to set up the next big bad in the universe, someone on a Thanos-level of threat. It could set up the Annihilation Wave.

Nova Could Set Up Annihilation as the Next Big Bad in the MCU

The next two Avengers movies need to show Doctor Doom as the considerable threat that he is. He should save the Earth after Avengers: Doomsday and then recreate it in his own image in Avengers: Secret Wars. However, after this, Doctor Doom should not be defeated in the traditional sense. He should lose, but he should still be around in the new MCU in the next phase, as a threat that is always looming in the background, while in Latveria with diplomatic immunity. This would keep Doom as a true threat, rather than another one-and-done villain. However, this also opens the door for who the next big threat should be.

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