Marvel Cinematic Universe general stuff

Feige's net worth is estimated $250 million; when he steps away from Marvel he'll basically have his pick of projects to head. Favreau though has sunk a little in my estimations what with his dalliances with Star Wars getting bit out of hand.

Probably makes sense: IIRC "New World Order" has a bit of a conspiratorial history, right?

Paul Rudd would have had very limited control over the script I'd speculate: sometimes leads might give input over their own characters' lines and suchlike... but I'd say it's rare they'll drive the direction of the overall script itself (and when they do, it's usually down to an ego out of control, and some horror stories of a production following along). And that's assuming the actor isn't just a bit "I don't care, it's just a pay-cheque" about the whole thing - which is probably more common than the script-tinkering types.

It comes down to who has the most control over a given MCU film, and where the power lies: we know, for instance, that directors would have less control than in other, more "normal" films given the degree to which MCU films have "pre-vis" dictating things; so I'd be slow to blame Peyton Reed here. Many MCU directors are basically guns-for-hire, and Reed likely had a schedule of "location" shooting days to accomplish, with all the (shítty) CGI happening elsewhere and outside his control. Again, rampant speculation on my part here, 'cos something like Gurdians' distinct set-pieces hinted towards James Gunn having a stronger hand across all phases of production.

I don't think it's a coincidence though that a writer for Rick & Morty produced a MCU script that ... looked and felt very like a Rick & Morty episode. I kinda liked the crazy exotica of the Quantum Realm - it reminded me of Farscape gone nuts - elements like living houses were a really interesting, unique idea; but there was nothing behind the strange creatures, it felt like that style of humour where it's "random" for random's sake. Again, very Ricky & Morty IMO.

I think the upshot was Quantumania's poor reception cost Jeff Loveness the Avengers job, and TBH while it's arguable he was a scapegoat in all this, I'm not sure it was ever a smart move entrusting the next Avengers film to a relative newbie anyway. So perhaps the right move for the wrong reasons.

But with the MCU, for directors, there's not as much creative leeway as with other productions. You'd do well to name a director with any kind of clout, or even a deep CV prior to joining the MCU at this stage in the franchise's lifespan. By way of example Jon Watts had only directed 2 small indie films before he was given the Spider-Man: Homecoming gig. Gunn's gone, Favreau hasn't directed since Iron Man 2, Shame Back did 1 and was gone, and Sam Raimi seemed to be there for the paycheque.

Directors don't necessarily have the power, or interest, to change scripts. Again no more than with actors you'll have those who just want to do the job and if the script says X, the directors organises the shooting of X. Some might be excited just to work on a big Hollywood production with superheroes and A List stars. It takes a lot of confidence and a certain type of director to stop a shoot and say "I think we should rewrite this scene", not to mention potentially being a union issue if the director isn't an actual guild member (to note the current state of Hollywood as I type!).

It'd take some nerve to walk up the Kevin Feige, head of the biggest movie franchise in history, and say "this ain't working, we need rewrites cos I'm not sure it's good".