Marvel's rumored plans may be changing the Young Avengers project to a Champions series

A rumored plan would change Marvel's long-gestating Young Avengers movie into a Champions TV series!
Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan in Marvel Studios' THE MARVELS. Photo by Laura Radford. © 2023 MARVEL.
Iman Vellani as Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan in Marvel Studios' THE MARVELS. Photo by Laura Radford. © 2023 MARVEL. /
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It looks like Marvel’s plans for a Young Avengers project may be changing into a bold new series!

For a while, it’s been clear the MCU is making plans for what amounts to a Young Avengers movie. The big push was one of the stingers for The Marvels, where Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) met Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) and proposed they put together a team, which included reaching out to Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton). 

The MCU also has Ironheart and Agatha All Along confirm the identity of the Scarlet Witch’s son, Wiccan, who’s looking for his missing twin brother. That all appears as the lead-in for a Young Avengers movie. 

However, noted Marvel insider Daniel Richtman (whose past scoops on the franchise have been proven true) is reporting a shift for the project. Rather than a Young Avengers movie, it appears Marvel wants to make it a TV show called The Champions, which keeps the concept but a bigger potential to take off. 

A short history of the teen heroes

Marvel has played with teams of young heroes like the long-running The New Warriors book in the 1990s. In 2005, they presented Young Avengers, composed of teens who were either the relatives of established heroes or newcomers. The book was hailed for its great characters and fun touches, like the romance of Wiccan and shapeshifter Hulking. 

The book had some on-off runs until 2014, when Marvel changed it to Champions, taking the name of a short-lived 1970s superteam. This had newer teen characters like Ms. Marvel, Nova, the Miles Morales Spider-man, and others, and has remained a popular book.

Per Richtman, a key reason for the title change is the simple fact that unlike comic books, people in real life age. Thus, by the time this project is filmed, some of these younger actors won’t be able to pass for teens, so dropping the “Young” from the title is a good move. 

There’s also how it makes them sound second-rate compared to the main Avengers, and having them step up to the limelight is better for winning over viewers. Changing this from a movie to a TV show also makes sense, as it gives more time for the team to form and bond while going on their first mission.

It should be noted that this is just a rumor at the moment as Disney hasn’t confirmed Richtman’s report or his other talk about how Hawkeye Season 2 will film next year. However, a new show on the Disney Treasure Cruise Ship carries a video featuring America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez), Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), and Riri Williams/Ironheart (Dominique Thorne) hanging out together. Maybe this is a test by Marvel to see how audiences react to these characters.

So it’s up in the air how true this can be but the idea of seeing these Champions hitting Disney+ in the future is another sign the MCU is seeking to widen its base in the next phase.