Popverse's coverage of Comic-Con International: San Diego 2026 is brought to you by Dark Horse Comics.

Marvel Comics is undergoing some major executive changes with Steve Wacker coming in as the new editor-in-chief, with current president Dan Buckley set to exit the company next year. But the remaining leadership, including Wacker, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, and head of television, animation, comics, and franchise Brad Winderbaum have all apparently thrown their support behind the publisher's upcoming Marvel Midnight horror comic line.

"I don't know how in motion everything was. Obviously, plans are plans and they're short- and long-term on the Marvel side," Hickman tells The Beat in an interview at Comic-Con International: San Diego 2026. "But I talked to Kevin. He's on board with it. You know, I've talked to Brad. I've talked to Steve. We have everybody's blessing. Everybody has read the scripts. Everybody's really excited about it. So we feel really good about it. I think they're expecting us to knock it out of the park, and so that's our job."

Marvel Studios has already embraced horror as part of the MCU, particularly in its Werewolf By Night Halloween special and its Marvel Zombies animated series. Like Marvel Midnight, Marvel Zombies started out as an alt-reality story that burgeoned into its own universe.

Marvel Midnight introduces a whole new type of Marvel horror, rebooting popular superheroes through a new, far more terrifying lens. Hickman's Midnight X-Men, created alongside artist Matteo Della Fonte, sets the X-Men in a world where mutants and vampires co-exist in a fragile peace that is shattered into all out war.

Hickman is, of course, well-known for his work on the X-Men as the creator of Krakoa and the original architect of that era of mutantkind. His return to the X-Men has become one of the most hotly anticipated aspects of Marvel Midnight, especially considering it involves another new twist on the team.

The X-Men and vampires go way back, clashing off and on for decades. Both Storm and Jubilee have spent time as vampires both in mainstream continuity and other realities, while the team at large have battled Dracula and his bloodthirsty undead armies multiple times.

All three introductory Marvel Midnight titles, Midnight X-Men, Midnight Fantastic Four, and Midnight Spider-Man all make their debut on October 7.

Want to know what's coming up next in pop culture? Check out Popverse's guides to:

• Upcoming movies
• Upcoming TV shows
• Upcoming comics
• Upcoming games
• Upcoming fiction books
• Upcoming comic conventions