It looks like Marvel’s plans for introducing the second-tier characters has been slightly modified [read Marvel Plans To Release Lower Budget Movies With B-List Characters].

Latino Review has a scoop that instead of the $20-$40 million low-budget films that were originally planned for these characters, Marvel may opt for short ten-minute films instead.

This approach could be used for Marvel “B-Team” characters such as Luke Cage, Dr. Strange, and the Black Panther. It is also believed that these films would be shown before full-length Marvel films such as The Avengers.

I am not really a fan of the “short film” approach, but if they use them to decide which characters to use in feature films, this could be a good idea. I guess a ten-minute Luke Cage film is better than no Luke Cage film at all. As of now, though, this is still a rumor. There is no news on which film will be the first to carry a ten-minute short with it, or which character will be first. This could be a good way to “test the waters” without investing too much money in little-known characters.