If you thought the Marvel Cinematic Universe would fizzle out after 2019’s intergalactic epic Avengers: Endgame, think again.
The MCU is bigger than ever, with some major movies and TV shows in the works for 2022.
Here is what to expect:
'Morbius' (April 1)
Sony, the Hollywood studio that owns the rights to Spider-Man, has already given us three Spidey films, starring Tom Holland, and two Venom spin-offs, with the eponymous villain played by Tom Hardy.
That web looks to be tightening ever closer, with Venom popping up in the post-credits sequence of the recent mega-hit Spider-Man: No Way Home. And now this shared universe is getting even more complex with Morbius.
Jared Leto plays Michael Morbius, a scientist suffering from a rare blood disease who cures himself with a form of vampirism, giving him superhuman abilities – including increased strength and speed. Glimpsed in the trailer is Michael Keaton, who featured as Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming and here tells Morbius: “You and I should stay in touch.” Intriguing.
'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness' (May 6)
Since his first solo outing in 2016, time-bending mystic Dr Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) has become a huge fixture in the MCU – not least in Spider-Man: No Way Home, when he caused a serious fissure in the space-time continuum.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness follows straight on from this cosmic calamity. Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda Maximoff, fresh from her own mistakes made in Marvel TV series WandaVision, returns, although the trailer hints at something even more exciting, as Strange must battle against an evil version of himself.
At the helm is veteran visionary director Sam Raimi; the man who almost single-handedly launched the modern-day superhero movie with 2002’s Spider-Man is finally back where he belongs.
'Thor: Love and Thunder' (July 8)
Without question, New Zealand director Taika Waititi brought his own idiosyncratic humour to 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok, the third solo outing for Chris Hemsworth’s Asgard warrior. So hopes are naturally high for Thor: Love and Thunder, with Waititi again in charge.
In this latest instalment, Natalie Portman returns as Thor’s romantic interest Jane Foster – with the storyline said to be adapting elements from Jason Aaron’s Mighty Thor comic book, in which the astrophysicist takes on Thor’s powers.
With various Guardians of the Galaxy characters also back, this marks Christian Bale’s first entry into the MCU, with the Oscar-winning actor cast as Gorr the God Butcher, a virtually immortal villain with a serious axe to grind.
'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse' – Part One (October 7)
Way before Dr Strange dug into the multiverse, Sony’s stunning animated Spider-Man adventure introduced the idea. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which was released in 2018, brought us New York kid Miles Morales, meeting several Spideys from different dimensions (including the porcine Spider-Ham).
Continuing Miles’s adventures, Across the Spider-Verse is the first of a two-parter that will expand that notion even further.
So far, it’s been confirmed that Takuya Yamashiro will play "Japanese Spider-Man", who appeared in the 1978 live-action Spider-Man series. With original directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, remaining on board as writers, among the new co-directors is playwright Kemp Powers, who previously helped usher Pixar’s brilliant Soul to screens.
'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' (November 22)
The first Black Panther is the MCU’s highest-grossing solo character outing to date, beaten at the box office only by the four Avengers movies. More than that, it was a cultural touchstone – from depicting the first superhero of African descent on the big screen to being the first superhero movie nominated for a Best Picture Oscar.
Since the death of Chadwick Boseman, who played T’Challa, ruler of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, the sequel has understandably changed shape, with Marvel choosing not to recast his role. Instead, it will focus more on the supporting characters, including T’Challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) and former love Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o). With writer-director Ryan Coogler once again at the helm, you can expect this to be huge.
'Ms Marvel' (Summer 2022)
Just as Black Panther felt significant, so does Ms Marvel. In this coming six-episode TV show on streaming service Disney+, Canadian newcomer Iman Vellani plays Kamala Khan – aka Ms Marvel – the first Muslim superhero.
The Pakistani-American from Jersey City, aged 16, is an avid gamer and Avengers fangirl who particularly loves Captain Marvel. In the film, Khan is unable to fit in, but that changes when she acquires her own powers – destined to integrate her right into the MCU (ahead of her big-screen appearance in 2023’s The Marvels, alongside Brie Larson, who will reprise her role as Captain Marvel).
Behind the show is an impressively diverse creative team, including Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the Belgian-Moroccan co-directors of Bad Boys for Life.
'Moon Knight' (TBC)
Arriving this year on Disney+ is Moon Knight, based on the titular character who first appeared in Marvel comics back in 1975. The show itself has significant connections to the Mena region, with Egyptian filmmaker Mohamed Diab directing four of the six episodes – partly filmed in Jordan – and Egyptian actress May Calamawy co-starring.
In the lead is Star Wars regular Oscar Isaac, who plays Marc Spector, a former US marine and CIA agent granted special powers from the Egyptian moon god Khonshu.
As Diab told The National earlier this year: “It’s one of the most interesting comics [in the Marvel universe] because it’s about someone who has DID – dissociative personality disorder. Formerly known as multiple personality disorder … just imagine Oscar Isaac doing that. He is killing it!”
She-Hulk (TBC)
Marvel boss Kevin Feige has described this coming Disney+ show as a “half-hour legal comedy”, with these 10 episodes marking the first appearance of Jennifer Walters in the MCU. She first appeared in the Marvel comics back in 1980, being turned into a milder version of the rage-fuelled Hulk after receiving a blood transfusion from her cousin Bruce Banner.
Playing her here will be Orphan Black’s Tatiana Maslany, and Mark Ruffalo – who has been Banner/Hulk ever since 2012’s The Avengers – will also star. Intriguingly, Tim Roth will also appear in his role as Abomination, the villain from 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, an early MCU misfire, which had Edward Norton in the title role.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Why are you, you?
Why are you, you?
From this question, a new beginning.
From this question, a new destiny.
For you are a world, and a meeting of worlds.
Our dream is to unite that which has been
separated by history.
To return the many to the one.
A great story unites us all,
beyond colour and creed and gender.
The lightning flash of art
And the music of the heart.
We reflect all cultures, all ways.
We are a twenty first century wonder.
Universal ideals, visions of art and truth.
Now is the turning point of cultures and hopes.
Come with questions, leave with visions.
We are the link between the past and the future.
Here, through art, new possibilities are born. And
new answers are given wings.
Why are you, you?
Because we are mirrors of each other.
Because together we create new worlds.
Together we are more powerful than we know.
We connect, we inspire, we multiply illuminations
with the unique light of art.
Ben Okri,
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Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
Barbie
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
Stage results
1. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) Deceuninck-QuickStep 4:39:05
2. Michael Matthews (AUS) Team BikeExchange 0:00:08
3. Primoz Roglic (SLV) Jumbo-Visma same time
4. Jack Haig (AUS) Bahrain Victorious s.t
5. Wilco Kelderman (NED) Bora-Hansgrohe s.t
6. Tadej Pogacar (SLV) UAE Team Emirates s.t
7. David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ s.t
8. Sergio Higuita Garcia (COL) EF Education-Nippo s.t
9. Bauke Mollema (NED) Trek-Segafredo s.t
10. Geraint Thomas (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers s.t
More from Aya Iskandarani
HOW TO WATCH
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Ipaf in numbers
Established: 2008
Prize money: $50,000 (Dh183,650) for winners and $10,000 for those on the shortlist.
Winning novels: 13
Shortlisted novels: 66
Longlisted novels: 111
Total number of novels submitted: 1,780
Novels translated internationally: 66
More from Armen Sarkissian
India squads
T20: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur
Test: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant
Indian construction workers stranded in Ajman with unpaid dues
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
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How Beautiful this world is!
