Outgoing Venom writer Donny Cates is teasing fans with a mysterious new Marvel title he’s writing, which he says is “bonkers,” in the classic Cates style.
“This new Marvel book I’m writing is so much fun. I’m losing my whole entire mind writing it,” Cates tweets (opens in new tab). “It’s….bonkers. Y’all are gonna dig this one. For sure.”
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Beyond apparently ramping up Cates’s trademark swing-for-the-fences style of big ideas and big concepts (that’s how we’re interpreting “bonkers”), Cates hasn’t revealed much if anything of what’s involved in his new title – though Cates did clarify in a follow up tweet (opens in new tab) in response to a fan guess that the new title won’t be Marvel’s recently teased Moon Knight relaunch.
On the other hand, he also tweeted that he wouldn’t reveal what the title was (opens in new tab) even if someone guessed correctly – and agreed with another tweet pointing out that he flat out lied about taking over Venom (opens in new tab) before his run was announced (we’ll forgive the fib – we can’t blame a creator for not spoiling a story before its time), so ultimately anything, even Moon Knight, is possible.
Cates previously told Newsarama that he and Ryan Stegman would work together again following the impending conclusion of their fan-favorite Venom run, which is scheduled to wrap up with Venom #200 (opens in new tab) on June 9, which may mean that whatever Cates is currently working on could involve the continuation of their creative partnership.
There’s also the chance this big mystery book could be the story that Avengers writer Jason Aaron previously told Newsarama that he and Cates had discussed collaborating on when their schedules would allow.
“We’ve talked about it a few times, it’s just something that hasn’t quite shaken out schedule-wise yet,” Aaron told Newsarama back in January about possibly working with Cates, who took over Thor following Aaron’s years-long run. “But it’s definitely something we’re both interested in when everything lines up.”
And of course, there’s always the chance that Cates’s new mystery title is the same as returning artist John Romita, Jr.’s recently announced mystery project.
Cates is in the midst of a Marvel exclusive contract, which has included runs on Thanos (opens in new tab), Doctor Strange (opens in new tab), Guardians of the Galaxy (opens in new tab), Venom (opens in new tab), and more.
Stay tuned to Newsarama as this story develops. Answers may arrive in Marvel’s full July 2021 solicitations, coming later this month.
Donny Cates is the ongoing writer of Marvel’s Thor title. Here are the ten best Thor stories of all time.