Marvel boss explains why The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is only six episodes long
The cost of each chapter is "very high".
Marvel boss Kevin Feige has addressed why The Falcon and the Winter Soldier consists of only six episodes, as opposed to the longer counts common at the likes of Netflix and HBO.
The action-packed series is headed to Disney Plus next month and will continue the story of Captain America's two closest allies following the events of Avengers: Endgame.
At Disney's virtual event held as part of the annual Television Critics Association, Feige was asked why the series had only six chapters, when dramas at competing streamers are typically between eight to 12.
The producer revealed that the reason for this decision was partly influenced by budget restraints, with the MCU shows on Disney Plus forking over a lot of cash for their A-list stars, visual effects and action sequences.
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"Six hours is what we landed on as the best way to tell our story," he said. "Six hours, whether it’s six episodes, or nine shorter episodes like WandaVision. The shows aren’t inexpensive, so the per-episode cost is very high and to get that bar I was talking about."
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He also discussed why these two particular characters were selected to get the spin-off treatment, praising the chemistry between them from their shared scenes in the Captain America trilogy.
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"It was always the thought we’d like to learn more about both of them [Bucky and Sam]," he explained. "In the little interactions they had with each other in Winter Soldier and Civil War… as friends of a mutual best friend in Captain America.
"We thought we’d have a fun dynamic, if we ever had that opportunity, we’d watch a whole show with the two of them and Disney Plus gives us that opportunity."
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier sees the return of Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan in their film roles, while Emily VanCamp and Daniel Brühl also reprise their roles as Sharon Carter and Baron Zemo respectively.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier launches on Disney Plus on Friday 19th March. You can view the full release schedule here. Take a look at the rest of our Sci-fi and Fantasy coverage, our dedicated Disney Plus hub or check out what else is on with our TV guide.
