The Marvel Cinematic Universe has undergone some big changes over the years, but Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige reportedly hinted the biggest could be on the way following the release of Avengers: Secret Wars.

Joanna Robinson, author of MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, spoke about the franchise's future while on the latest episode of The Watch podcast, via ComicBookMovie. She told hosts Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald she was aware of a “quote” from Feige implying the studio would use Avengers: Secret Wars as a chance to perform a “soft reboot” of sorts by “pruning” some the franchise. It would mean dropping whatever isn't working, keeping what is, and possibly bringing characters back audiences “thought were gone forever.”

Robinson additionally spoke about covering the MCU's history in her book, her time in and around Marvel Studios, and what else she has heard about including Marvel's reported TV production overhaul.

As far as the apparent reboot goes, Secret Wars presents a prime opportunity for Marvel Studios to give its cinematic universe a proper reset akin to the 2015 Secret Wars comic event. Marvel Comics used the event to crash its various universes together in a major storyline which saw most of the multiverse destroyed before a new, single universe was created featuring characters from the main Marvel Comics line, the Marvel Ultimate line, and various one-offs and mini-series such as Old Man Logan.

The studio could do something similar in order to recast certain characters, such as Iron Man, and introduce groups like the X-Men in a way that doesn't leave massive plot holes in the preexisting universe.

It is also understandable why Marvel Studios would want to use Secret Wars as narrative justification to refine the franchise a bit. By the end of 2023, the studio will have released 33 films, 11 Disney+ series, and five one-shot shorts under the MCU banner with even more set to be released before Avengers: Secret Wars hits screens in 2027.