Guardians of the Galaxy 2 confirmed for July 2017 release

By Adam Rosenberg Updated July 27, 2014

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guardians of the galaxy — Disney

Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy isn’t even here yet, but a sequel to the August 1 blockbuster has now been confirmed for release on July 28, 2017. The news was confirmed during Marvel’s panel at 2014’s Comic Con International in San Diego (via AICN’s Eric Vespe).

Guardians of the Galaxy 2: pic.twitter.com/ADDXBD16Iq

— Eric Vespe (@EricVespe) July 27, 2014

Add another confirmed title to Marvel’s tantalizingly nebulous list of planned release dates through 2019. Starting with Avengers: Age of Ultron, which the studio has lined up to release on May 1, 2015, there are 11 dates in all, and only four of them are confirmed.

Ant-Man follows the second Avengers movie on July 17, 2015 and the third Captain America movie is coming on May 6, 2016. There’s another 2016 release, on July 16, that many believe will focus on Doctor Strange and then another unknown on May 5, 2017 before Guardians of the Galaxy 2‘s now-confirmed July 28 arrival.

Everything after that is hazy, though many expect the May 4, 2018 release to be a third Avengers movie. If what we know of 2014-2017 is any indication, Marvel is keeping its Avengers and Avengers tie-in tentpoles to the valuable early May window and reserving the deep summer for slightly more off-beat stories.

With Guardians this year, Ant-Man in 2015, and Guardians 2 in July 2017 — not to mention the July 2016 expectation for Doctor Strange — you have movies that dig a little deeper into the comic book publisher’s library. If this spring/summer approach is indeed accurate, then it’s a fair bet that the May 5, 2017 release is another solo outing for an Avenger. Possibly a third Thor? Or a first solo Hulk with Mark Ruffalo as the star?

It’s impossible to say with any certainty at this point. Marvel’s post-2015 calendar lies almost completely in the realm of speculation at this point. What do you think is coming? What would you like to see? Sound off in the comments.

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Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

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