Marvel's 2026 Hall H Panel: Ryan Gosling's Ghost Rider, Black Panther 3 Dated, and a Surprising X-Men Silence

Marvel Studios came out of the gate swinging at Hall H for San Diego Comic-Con 2026. Ryan Gosling was revealed as Ghost Rider, and Black Panther 3 was dated for December 15, 2028. Here is everything that was presented, said and announced. Later in this piece I explain why I rate the panel a 7.5, and why the total absence of X-Men news shocked me even more than Marvel jumping over Avengers: Secret Wars.

Doctor Doom masks were waiting in every Hall H seat before Kevin Feige took the stage

Everyone who entered Hall H found a Doctor Doom mask and cloak waiting in their seat. Some people were listing them on eBay before the panel even started, and people were buying them. By the time I sat down to write this, four had already sold at almost $200, which is crazy.

The Marvel panel started a little late. Kevin Feige took the stage wearing a Doctor Doom hat. He talked about Marvel Studios' history in Hall H: revealing the first Avengers cast there, revealing Tom Hiddleston as Loki in his actual costume there, and, more recently, revealing that Robert Downey Jr. would be Doctor Doom. Then he said it all comes back to the comics. Without the comics, he said, there would be no MCU, no movies, no TV shows, no animation, nothing.

Feige talked briefly about X-Men '97. He also mentioned that Vision Quest was coming in October as part of the WandaVision trilogy.

Endgame Encore and Ryan Gosling's Ghost Rider opened the big reveals

Marvel then went straight into a quick Avengers: Endgame Encore presentation. It was just a trailer of old footage, and it was called Endgame Encore, with no Avengers title on screen. Feige then confirmed there would be exclusive footage for Avengers: Doomsday.

After that came the haymakers. Marvel announced that Ryan Gosling would play Ghost Rider, with the film slated for a 2028 release and Shawn Levy directing. That made Ghost Rider our first official Phase 7 title, with a 2028 release date attached.

Jon Bernthal's Punisher and the Avengers: Doomsday cast took the stage

Jon Bernthal came on stage briefly to talk about Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Marvel also showed a new clip from the film that included the Punisher and Spider-Man fighting.

The panel then jumped into Avengers: Doomsday. The Russos came out, and the cast followed. Hayley Atwell was confirmed to return in Doomsday, which we basically already knew.

Robert Downey Jr. invited the hall to join the family of Doom, and Deadpool crashed the panel

Robert Downey Jr. came on stage and said something along the lines of: God bless us all, "it ain't easy being green," he had a lot of help, and he had a whole family around him to finally be an archnemesis. He said decisions have to be made, and that you have to decide whether you are on the side of the good guys. Then, in the Doom voice, he said you may consider the alternative of joining the family of Doom.

Then Deadpool showed up in a gray costume. Some places reported that he was confirmed for Doomsday, but he basically said he was not in Doomsday, while implying there is more coming soon. He also had a funny gag with Paul Rudd, doing the long time listener, first time caller bit to ask where Thor was and why he was crying. Paul Rudd answered that it was because he is a Wrexham fan.

The new Avengers: Doomsday trailer showed Doom resurrecting Sentinels

Marvel then showed the hall exclusive footage from a new Doomsday trailer. Doom is resurrecting Sentinels, like we saw in the leaked footage. A heartbroken Reed asks, "Did you do this, Victor?" and then asks again, louder. Doom replies: "All of you have lived stolen lives and now you must give them back."

Black Panther 3 was dated for December 15, 2028, with T'Challa's son taking the mantle

Kevin Feige retook the stage and said there was one more thing. Ryan Coogler came out and announced Black Panther 3 for December 15, 2028. That gave us Ghost Rider and Black Panther 3, both confirmed as 2028 films after Avengers: Secret Wars.

I think the title itself is super interesting, because it shows Marvel does not have a real title yet. That is why it is not Black Panther something; it is Black Panther 3. That is basically a placeholder that is going to change.

We also got the next Black Panther. T'Challa's son will inherit the mantle, and he will be played by the actor from The Long Walk. Feige closed by confirming that Marvel has its movies mapped out to 2042, and that the new universe will be streamlined and simplified after Avengers: Secret Wars. He said there will be a huge push for the X-Men, along with plans to eventually unveil a live action Miles Morales.

Ghost Rider is a curious pick to lead Marvel's 2028

All in all, I think this sets up a pretty awesome 2028. Black Panther 3 is going to be an amazing film, especially since we know Denzel Washington is involved. I am really surprised he was not part of the presentation. We had Black Panther 3 pretty much pegged. I covered it that same morning, and we knew it was coming, Denzel or not.

Marvel must have really high hopes and plans for Ghost Rider as the first movie out of the gate in 2028 with Shawn Levy. Ryan Gosling is a known commodity in Hollywood, and Shawn Levy proved his mettle with Deadpool & Wolverine, although, to be fair, that is Deadpool & Wolverine. I can't wait to hear more about this film. It slipped through the cracks of all our so-called reporting; the industry insiders and scoopers missed this one. Of all the movies Marvel could have banked on in that spot, Ghost Rider is a curious one to me.

Why I give Marvel's Hall H a 7.5

Overall, I would give this Marvel Hall H about a 7.5. There were some cool announcements, but nothing close to Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom or the huge slate announcements of 2019 and 2022. As I have said before, Marvel Studios will never do that to itself again. It will not hang itself out to dry by announcing a full slate of four or five years' worth of movies with committed dates. There are just too many unforeseen circumstances. Once Marvel started cancelling projects like Armor Wars and Blade, those mega slates were never going to happen again.

Still, I am a little surprised there was no Phase 7 graphic, logo or slate of any kind, even one with just the two 2028 logos as official release graphics. To be fair, Marvel did put the two official logos up on its Instagram, so release graphics did exist. Black Panther 3 still does not have an official title, and there is much more to come for both films. Getting a new Black Panther casting is pretty wild, but I am a little shocked that Marvel jumped over Avengers: Secret Wars.

No X-Men news at all surprised me most

I am even more shocked that Marvel did not talk at all about the X-Men in any way, when it knows that is everybody's main focus. I said point blank beforehand that we were not going to get a casting, but there were no announcements of any kind, no logo, and no word on when we might get one. The X-Men reboot will not lead off what Marvel has been calling the mutant saga, which is how Kevin Feige referred to it just days earlier.

You have to imagine the wheels are turning and that Marvel is right in the middle of cooking it up. It does not want to reveal any of the flavour yet or give us a taste test, because it is that deep into the work. I guess that is okay. I am just very surprised there was no talk of it at all.

How did this presentation land for you: was it up to standard, or did it feel a little lackluster?