With Black Panther currently tearing up the box office and Avengers: Infinity War right on its heels, Marvel Studios is firing on all cylinders. Recently, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige discussed the status of the studio and the recent deal to acquire the movie rights to the previously owned Fox characters. During the interview, Feige dropped a nugget that may hint at where the MCU is heading in Phase 4.

When asked about ideas for future projects, Feige discussed where he sees the MCU going while also providing a possible cryptic message:

“We’re not ready to talk about what those are, but like the ones we’ve made in the first three phases, they’re ones that are either just great concepts for a film, great characters with great supporting characters, like Panther. New locations and lands that have cultural significance all their own, and continuing to tell stories that represent the world as it is, that represent people who perhaps haven’t seen themselves portrayed in this light in the past. We want to continue to do that.”

This may seem like the usual paint by numbers response we get when Feige answers questions regarding future MCU projects but let’s look at it a little deeper. The interesting tidbit that stands out is when he talks about “new locations and lands that have cultural significance.” Marvel is known to have a plethora of iconic comic locations that have a rich history, Asgard, Wakanda, and Genosha just to name a few.

One location that is rarely brought up is Atlantis. In Marvel Comics, the underwater city is home to Namor the Sub-Mariner who has been a staple of the Marvel Universe since 1939. Now before moving forward, it should be pointed out that the correlation between Feige’s quote and Namor was pointed out by our good friends at Omega Underground.

Much like Wakanda, Atlantis has an extensive history in Marvel Comics and one that has yet to be explored on the big screen. If Feige is looking for new locations to use in the MCU, he likely isn’t looking past Atlantis.

The issue in the past for Atlantis and the character of Namor is where his movie rights resided. For some time Universal owned them until they reverted back to Marvel following Universal opting not to use Namor in a movie. The timeline is strange with conflicting reports about when Marvel actually received the rights back but what is certain is that they do currently hold the rights.

To add some fuel to this speculation fire, if you remember back in Iron Man 2, a location that appears to be Atlantis shows up on Nick Fury’s SHIELD map. Here’s an image for reference:

What’s even more interesting about this map is the fact that the other location circled is in fact Wakanda. Marvel is known to drop easter eggs for future projects a long time out from when we actually see it on the big screen, could Atlantis be another? We’ll just have to wait to find out.

It has also been pointed out that an easy way to introduce Atlantis and Namor would actually be in Black Panther 2. The two characters have a historic rivalry, plus Wakanda would be the perfect MCU location to have a run-in with Atlantis.

Would you like to see a live-action Atlantis in the MCU? Let us know in the comments below! –Jackson Hayes