It's been a big week for MCU fans, as Spider-Man: Far From Home came swinging onto our screens with Tom Holland reprising his role as the titular character.
Critics and audiences alike are describing the film as a satisfying sequel to Homecoming, as well as a worthy round up of the MCU's Phase 3.
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The film itself sees the Web-head enjoying a well-earned class trip to Venice - he did just help save the universe and lose his mentor all in one sitting, after all.
But alas, it's no rest for the wicked and Peter Parker soon finds he's got more than a few teenage woes on his hands when Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) and Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) turn up.
The question is, what's in store the franchise moving forward? We already know the next step is Phase 4 of the cinematic universe and we also know there are a few films already in the pipeline (Black Widow included).
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But before we get ahead of ourselves, we should perhaps look to Far From Home and consider the ramifications the film has for the MCU's future. In particular, the post-credits scenes.
Now before we go any further, let us warn you that we're about to enter SPOILER TERRITORY. So if you haven't had a chance to watch Far From Home yet and you don't want to know what happens right at the end, look away now.
With that out of the way, there are two post-credits scenes, the first one seeing J.K. Simmons playing the Daily Bugle (.net) editor J. Jonah Jameson.
The second and more significant clip revealed that Skrull leader Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) was masquerading as Fury this whole time, while his wife Soren (Sharon Blynn) was posing as Maria Hill.
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This is particularly interesting as it opens up a whole lotta opportunities for the MCU moving forward, implying that the Skrulls could've been pretending to be Marvel characters in previous films.
Fans of the comics will recognise this plot point from the event Secret Invasion, a story-line that involved Skrulls shape-shifting to become characters on Earth.
Could it be that we'll see this battle play out on the big screen in Phase 4? It's not out of the question, although the bosses would have to go off-page if they did. The comic book Skrulls are strictly villains, as opposed to the misunderstood heroes they're shown to be in Captain Marvel.
Back to the post-credits scene, and we later see Fury in space working with the Skrulls, implying his extended 'vacation' is actually something to do with S.W.O.R.D. (Sentient World Observation and Response Department).
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This is basically like S.H.I.E.L.D., only it deals with extraterrestrial rather than terrestrial threats.
We all know the MCU wants to expand its cosmic adventures thanks to the success of the Guardians of the Galaxy film series, and introducing S.W.O.R.D. to the cinematic universe would be a good way to make this happen in Phase 4 and beyond.
While we're on the topic, another key figure in the future of the MCU is Guardians of the Galaxy 3.
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Although it's early days for the anticipated threequel, production is underway and, following the events of Avengers: Endgame, you can bet good money on Thor (Chris Hemsworth) joining the titular team for some cosmic adventures. Just call them the 'Asgardians of the Galaxy'.
So what does this tell us? That the MCU has its sights set on the stars. Now the Avengers are, for the time being, done assembling, it's likely Phase 4 will continue to explore outer space and the cape-wearers that keep it protected.
Featured Image Credit: Marvel