There was an idea…

This Wednesday, September 10th, will mark the sixth anniversary of the first full-length Friends From Work podcast. Titled “Beginning of the Endgame,” it truly was a beginning for Kyle and Robby. Motivated by a shared passion for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the pair of friends embarked on a rewatch journey through the entire Infinity Saga.

Now, nearly 500 episodes later, they’ve navigated the Covid-19 pandemic, law school, multiple strikes, births, medical events, and so much more to continue delivering new podcasts regularly through the Multiverse Saga. They’ve interviewed actors, directors, writers, composers, and comic book writers. They’ve attended San Diego Comic-Con and a Marvel World Premiere. But most importantly, they’ve cultivated a wonderful community of listeners, readers, and passionate fans with their thoughtful insights and relentless positivity in a world that has become increasingly focused on grievances and negativity.

To celebrate, tomorrow there will be a special 90-minute anniversary episode exclusively available on FFW+ as the guys go back to the beginning and recount their journey from 2019 to now.

I would personally like to take a moment to thank Robby and Kyle (and manager Pete) for the hours and hours of entertainment and for giving me (just an avid listener and occasional emailer in the early days) the opportunity to contribute behind-the-scenes and write every week for FFW. Here’s to another 6 years of Friends From Work.

Time to head over to…

THE WATERCOOLER

THIS WEEK IN THE MCU

• The first trailer for Marvel Zombies was released last week, and it is insane. I’ve never been a huge fan of zombie content, so my anticipation was not high, but kudos to the trailer editors at Marvel for getting me excited. Apparently I was not the only person impressed- The Hollywood Reporter reported that it was the second-biggest launch trailer for any project from Marvel Animation (behind X-Men ‘97). The four-episode event premieres on September 24th.

• Veteran MCU composer Laura Karpman (Captain America: Brave New World) confirmed on Instagram that she will return to score Marvel Zombies.

• Tom Holland gave an exclusive interview to LADBible last week where he talked about his heavy involvement in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, from his ideas for the new suit to script and plot notes.

• Letitia Wright joined a growing number of actors (Pedro Pascal, Alan Cumming) to confirm she has wrapped principal photography on Avengers: Doomsday.

• In an otherwise unrelated article from Deadline about Ed Harris (Westworld) joining the Yellowstone universe, it was confirmed that Harris will be playing Hollywood agent Neal Saroyan in the upcoming Marvel Television project Wonder Man.

• Variety profiled Channing Tatum to promote his new movie Roofman, and the conversation inevitably turned to Avengers: Doomsday. Tatum talked about his first ever Marvel audition (Thor), being injured on-set, and the notes he received from the Russo Brothers about his cajun accent as Gambit.

BEYOND THE MULTIVERSE

• James Gunn, writer, director and architect of the DCU took to social media to announce Man of Tomorrow, the follow-up to this summer’s hit Superman. The sequel will land in theaters on July 9th, 2027.

TRUE BELIEVERS RUMOR OF THE WEEK

• Wonder Man premieres this winter and Daredevil: Born Again season 2 and VisionQuest both recently wrapped filming, but what comes next for Marvel Television after that? Our intel suggests that Marvel continues to develop more series than they are planning to make and right now they are developing a second season of Hawkeye, a Scarlett Johannson-led Blonde Phantom project, and a new series not based on any specific IP that would follow two government spies hired to track down and take out rogue superhumans. As of now, Marvel’s plan is to choose which of these shows to greenlight next Spring.

A few quick plugs before I go- please visit our awesome partners at Homage and Panel Bound Comics, and please come join our lively Marvel conversation over on Discord. Let Kyle and Robby know your favorite episodes, memories, and moments from the last six years of Friends From Work and I hope to see you back here again next week!

Thanks for reading,

-Greg