Take Success and Challenges of the Marvel Cinematic Universe-Taking MCU As an Example

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_10How to use a DOI?

Keywords

The narrative system of the film universe; Cross-media narrative; the formula for superheroes has solidified; Aesthetic fatigue

Abstract

As one of the defining cultural phenomena of the 21st century, the Marvel cinematic universe employs meticulously crafted narrative strategies that generate emotional engagement among audiences through inter-film character collaborations and long-term storytelling arcs. At the same time, it innovatively integrates elements of science fiction, comedy, action, and special effects, transcends cultural barriers through the universal value proposition of “justice triumphs over evil,” and leverages mature industrial production to establish itself as a benchmark for commercialization within the global film and television industry. However, in recent years, due to the depletion of creativity, which has led to audience aesthetic fatigue, and the lack of new roles to take over after the retirement of core characters, Marvel movies have hit a bottleneck, with box office declines and polarized word-of-mouth. This article analyzes its successful performance and logic, as well as the reasons for the bottlenecks this year, through case studies, and explores the implications for China’s film and television industry.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Yongtong Lai
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/02/26
TI  - Take Success and Challenges of the Marvel Cinematic Universe-Taking MCU As an Example
BT  - Proceedings of the 2025 5th International Conference on Culture, Design and Social Development (CDSD 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 81
EP  - 88
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_10
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-541-6_10
ID  - Lai2026
ER  -