Marvel Studios' 2025 animated projects seem to be on track to fill a big void in the MCU. Following the success of the Infinity Saga, Marvel Studios ventured into long-form storytelling with Disney+ shows such as WandaVision, Loki, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Phase 4 also featured a single animated MCU animated show — Marvel's What If...?, which opened the door for a few other animated releases in Phase 5.
Despite Marvel's lower theatrical output, 2025 is packed with highly-anticipated releases. In late October 2024, Marvel Entertainment released a teaser trailer for the MCU's 2025 Disney+ projects, which include live-action series such as Daredevil: Born Again, Wonder Man, and Ironheart, as well as animated shows such as animated shows such as the upcoming What If...? season 3, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Eyes of Wakanda, and Marvel Zombies. All these animated projects are unique in their own way, and not only because each of them takes place in a different universe.
What If…? Missed Its Chance To Use Various Animation Art Styles
What If...? Features Several Different Timelines But Uses The Same Art Style For All Of Them
Marvel's What If...? is the MCU's first and only anthology series so far. It explores the MCU multiverse through multiple "what if?" scenarios that take place in many timelines across the multiverse, which makes it the perfect project to use one unique art style for every episode, as every universe introduced in What If...? reveals drastic changes in comparison to the MCU's main timeline. Yet, every episode in What If...?'s three seasons employs the exact same animation style — 3D animation with cel shading, CGI, and a blend of 2D and 3D backgrounds and effects.
The same year Marvel's What If...? season 1 premiered, Disney released an anthology with a unique animation style for each episode: Star Wars : Visions .
As an anthology series, Marvel's What If...? could have done much more with its format. Throughout the decades, Marvel Comics has explored hundreds of different comic book art styles that could work well in motion, from Jack Kirby's classic sci-fi extravaganza to David Aja's minimalistic signature to Mark Bagley's larger-than-life embodiment of Marvel's Ultimate era. A wide variety of art styles would have also highlighted how infinitely diverse the MCU multiverse is.
Marvel Studios’ 2025 Animated Projects Introduce New Animation Art Styles
The MCU's Upcoming Animated Shows Use Different Animation Styles To Marvel's What If...?
As shown in Marvel Entertainment's teaser for the MCU's 2025 series, Marvel Studios will introduce two brand-new animation styles in the MCU multiverse. Phase 5's Eyes of Wakanda seems to follow the same animation style as Arcane — a blend of 3D and 2D art style inspired by anime and its source material, the League of Legends video game. Meanwhile, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man's animation style takes inspiration from the hand-drawn nature of the comic book format, with a low frame rate motion similar to that of the Spider-Verse movies.
Phase 5's Marvel Zombies show will inherit What If...? 's art style
The zombified heroes seen in Marvel Entertainment's teaser for Marvel Zombies will likely be new variants. However, the connection between Marvel Zombies and What If...? may come from the zombies' invasion between universes, as the zombie virus spreads through the multiverse in Marvel Comics' original storyline. Therefore, Phase 5's Marvel Zombies show will inherit What If...?'s art style, and it might reveal that some of the zombies introduced in What If...? season 1 episode 5 managed to invade a different timeline.
The MCU Is Still Missing A Key Animation Style
Marvel Studios Hasn't Created A Fully 2D Original Animated Show Yet
Phase 5 featured the return of X-Men: The Animated Series in the form of X-Men '97, which revived the beloved 1990s X-Men cartoon with massive visual upgrades, including 3D animated action sequences. Given its predecessor's legacy, X-Men '97 earns the name of Marvel Studios' first official 2D-animated series. However, Marvel Studios hasn't announced any original 2D series yet. Apart from X-Men '97, shows such as Spectacular Spider-Man and Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes prove that original takes on Marvel lore work well in cartoon format.
Before Marvel Studios announces a brand-new, self-contained 2D-animated show, the studio is more likely to confirm another entry in X-Men '97's continuity. X-Men '97's massive success ensures at least two new seasons (one of which is already in production), and raises the likelihood of a similar revival. Spider-Man: The Animated Series could be the next 1990s Marvel show to be revisited and modernized. Other 1990s animated shows like The Incredible Hulk and The Avengers: United They Stand could follow suit.
