Earlier this week Marvel released a video reaffirming their commitment to the movie side of their cinematic universe, and teasing their upcoming film slate for the next several years. Given how much the TV side of the MCU has carried things for the past few months of the pandemic (which, don’t forget, is still ongoing), it was almost jarring to see no acknowledgment of their upcoming Disney+ series in that video. Not to worry, though, as today the studio released a video featuring Loki star Tom Hiddleston that not only teases the forthcoming series, but also makes a big announcement: episodes of Loki will drop on Disney+ on Wednesdays instead of Fridays.
“I’ve noticed in these long superhero montages, Loki tends to get left out,” Hiddleston says in the video, referring to this week’s earlier video. In an effort to prove Loki’s heroism, Hiddleston reveals that new episodes of Loki will debut on Wednesdays instead of Fridays, and that the series will now premiere two days earlier than previously announced, on Wednesday, June 9th.
Is this a bit of chaos from the god of mischief? It seems more likely that the move to Wednesdays for the Disney+ Marvel series is intended to ensure the upcoming MCU film releases, typically on Fridays, don’t conflict with the episode drops. New episode releases have definitely become an event in and of themselves on social media, so it makes sense that the studio wouldn’t want to distract from that if possible.
Still, the Wednesday move has a certain comic book-y feel to it. We already know Marvel is committed to keeping Wednesday as their periodical release day, even as other publishers have moved to align with the bookstore market on Tuesdays. It also potentially opens up the possibility for even more synergy between Marvel Studios and Marvel Comics. How cool would it be for events in a Marvel comic to be reflected or have an impact on what’s happening in a TV episode released on the same day? (I know it’s much more likely that what’s happening on TV would impact the comics and not the other way around, but the point still stands – that could be really cool).
Loki premieres on Friday, June 11th Wednesday, June 9th on Disney+.
