With The Amazing Spider-Man swinging through the multiplex right now and Marvel’s The Avengers approaching $1.5 billion dollars at the worldwide box office—that’s “billion” with a “b”—it should be no surprise that Marvel has already announced sequels for 2014 and 2015, respectively. But until then, which costumed superheroes and dastardly villains will next grace the silver screen?
Before Hawkeye, Black Widow and the Hulk fight evil once again onscreen, their teammates will get their own inevitable sequels. So mark your calendars for May 3, 2013 (Iron Man); November 8, 2013 (Thor); and April 4, 2014 (Captain America).
Avengers producer Kevin Feige last year teased that the events of Iron Man 3 “will be the first of what we sort of refer to as phase two of this… saga that will culminate, God willing, in Avengers 2.”
Disney reps said the Captain America sequel “will pick up where… The Avengers leaves off, as Steve Rogers continues his affiliation with Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. and struggles to embrace his role in the modern world.”
Until the Avengers assemble one more time, the next supergroup to take center stage will likely be Guardians of the Galaxy, for which Disney has just announced an August 1, 2014 release date, despite having no director or actors lined up. “In the Marvel universe, the time-travelling Guardians, who were rebooted in comic form in 2008, consist of Adam Warlock, Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, Rocket Racoon, Groot and Quasar,” reports Deadline.com.
A few more updates:
* Filmmaker Josh Trank, hot off the worldwide success of Chronicle, has been signed to reboot The Fantastic Four. “He has been offered everything and attached himself to various projects,” Deadline notes. “But Fox expects Fantastic Four to be the next film that he directs.”
* Daredevil, formerly embodied by Ben Affleck, is also set for a revamp. Director David Slade dropped off the project and Fox is back to square one. The script has been spiffed up and polished, but the studio “isn’t hellbent” on getting this one going, Deadline says. “If the movie isn’t underway by fall, the rights will revert to Marvel and Disney.”
* Sizzling hot up-and-comer Hiroyuki Sanada will clash with Hugh Jackman in The Wolverine, directed by James Mangold. The action sequel will go before the cameras in Australia and Japan starting next month. Already a matinee idol in Japan, Sanada is a rising star in Hollywood. He will next be seen in The Railway Man with Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman, and the mega-budget action-adventure 47 Ronin opposite Keanu Reeves. Both films will be in theatres early next year.
Three more Brave New Hollywood tidbits for you: In a long interview a few months ago, Feige said that Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk—a fan favorite from The Avengers—will probably not get his own movie, following two lukewarm attempts in 2003 with Eric Bana, and again with Edward Norton in 2008. However, Ant-Man and Doctor Strange will indeed get their turn in the spotlight.
Got your popcorn?