'The Avengers' Update 02.05.11

So many Marvel movies coming out in such a short period of time means it's easy for some to get lost in the madness. Now I'm not saying that Joss Whedon's The Avengers is getting lost, because it's probably one of the most hyped and awaited superhero movie...EVER. But details of this one aren't coming as often as say, Spider-Man, or Captain America. But here and there we are granted a small glimpse into the workings of Marvel's multi-hero endeavor.


Over at SuperHeroHype, Chris Hemsworth (Thor, duh) talks about the Avengers script:


"I saw a very early draft and, yeah, it's incredible," Hemsworth said of the screenplay, "...Look, everything about the story in the comic books is huge. You have these huge, big superheroes and these huge, big egos kind of crammed into one small space. Reading the script, it was massive. I said to Joss [Whedon], 'I don't know how you're going to shoot this thing, but I'm excited to be onboard and let's give it a go.'"

He added that there will be, on screen, a lot of friction between Thor and his fellow Avengers, hinting that Thor and the Hulk, especially, will come to blows onscreen.

When asked about the rumored cameo of Jeremy Renner in Thor, Hemsworth played it coy, neither confirming nor denying the actor or the character's appearance. If Hawkeye, does appear, though, it won't be in a scene with Hemsworth.

"He wasn't on set when I was there," Hemsworth did confirm.

We better see some full on fight scenes between Thor and Hulk, that could be so epic that I can't even think about it without drooling a little bit. And I can't get enough of Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, give him a cameo in every single Marvel movie, snoogins.


Next, Splashpage has some more info coming from Samuel L. Jackson regarding his upcoming cameos and another female character in The Avengers:

"In the next month or so, I have to do one day on 'Thor' and another day on 'Captain America', and in April we start 'The Avengers,'" Jackson told Fallon. "'Thor' and 'Captain America' are pretty much done, but I haven't done my part in them yet — I'm just connective tissue for them to join 'The Avengers.'"

While Jackson indicated that he has "no idea" what his scenes will involve, he did share one juicy detail: that he's screen-testing with several actresses this week vying for a new female role in "The Avengers."

"They have this new character that's my sidekick or something that's with me all the time," he revealed.

And that's where the second half of our Marvel news double feature comes in, with an unofficial list of four actresses testing for the mysterious new character.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Morena Baccarin ("V"), Jessica Lucas ("Melrose Place"), Cobie Smulders ("How I Met Your Mother"), and Mary Elizabeth Winstead ("Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World") are on the short list for the role. Baccarin could have an edge due to her prior work with "Avengers" director Joss Whedon on the "Firefly" television series and subsequent "Serenity" movie.

And again I ask: Who could this mystery role be? /Film has the scoop:


It’s looking more and more likely that Nick Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. assistant in Joss Whedon‘s The Avengers is going to be played by Cobie Smulders. Smulders, who currently starts on CBS’s How I Met Your Mother, was one of several actresses who reportedly had to read along side Samuel L. Jackson for the role as Maria Hill. And while most of us thought Morena Baccarin, who previously worked with Whedon onFirefly, might have a leg up, Deadline is reporting Smulders emerged as the front runner.

In the Deadline story, they report that Whedon was very familiar with Smulders because when he was attempting to put together a Wonder Woman movie, she was among the actresses he was considering for the female superhero.


Hill has a long and interesting history in the Marvel universe. She’s been an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., a director of S.H.I.E.L.D., a major player in the Civil War story line and much more. It’s unclear where she’ll fit into The Avengers but an educated guess would be that the story takes places slightly earlier in the character’s career and mostly puts her in the mix so Marvel can make her increasingly important over the course of multiple movies. That’s why whomever gets the role will have to sign a huge contract that includes upwards of nine movies.


I hope Smulders gets the part, not only because she's Canadian, but because she also plays one on TV. And Maria Hill seems like a great addition to the movie, tone down the testosterone a bit, ya know what I mean? The Avengers: Sausage Party... just saying.


Moving on...


Marvel has announced development on two other movies featuring Avengers, from the comics at least. First up is Black Panther:


From Comics Alliance:


After nearly 20 years in Development Hell, the heroic King of Wakanda is once again on the path towards a major motion picture debut. The Hollywood Reporter brought news this week that Marvel Studios is actively developing a live-action adaptation of Black Panther, the classic superhero created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The project is being overseen by Marvel's Kevin Feige, presumably as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and written by Mark Bailey (Pandemic: Facing AIDS and Ghost of Abu Ghraib).

The brilliant King and protector of fictional African nation Wakanda, Black Panther has been the subject of numerous aborted film projects dating back as early as 1992. Wesley Snipes was for years the name most closely associated with a Black Panther movie despite his prominence as another Marvel superhero, the vampire hunter Blade.

Mark Bailey is known for his work on powerful documentaries like Pandemic: Facing AIDS and Ghost of Abu Ghraib, and is presently working on a film based on the non-fiction book, The Last of the Tribe: The Epic Quest to Save a Lone Man in the Amazon. The Hollywood Reporter writes that Bailey's seemingly incongruous background is in keeping with Marvel's pattern of staffing of its movies with unusual people, including Shakespearean Kenneth Branagh as the director of Thor, actor-comedian Jon Favreau as the director of Iron Man, and Ordinary People writer Alvin Sargent as a screenwriter for Spider-Man. It seems likely that Bailey will bring gritty realism to Black Panther by way of his experience in documentaries.


A Black Panther movie would be seriously kick ass, especially if its planned to be part of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). I highly doubt Snipes would be considered a frontrunner for the role anymore, but some other rumored names thrown around have been Djimon Hounsou (Who provides the voice of T'Challa in the Black Panther animated series), and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, from Lost.


The other news is kind of just a rumor at this point, but no surprise to anyone really. Don Cheadle talks to Splashpage about War Machine:

"They're developing it now, they're working on that," Cheadle told MTV News when asked about a "War Machine" movie. "I think they've hired a writer, so we'll see how it goes. It would be a lot of fun."

As for whether we'll see War Machine make a cameo in "The Avengers," the actor didn't expect to Rhodey to join the fight with Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, and the rest of Marvel's superhero team.

"I don't think he shows up in ['Avengers']," said Cheadle. "I think he's kind of a lone wolf."

The actor also commented on the exit of "Iron Man" and "Iron Man 2" director Jon Favreau, who announced his departure from the franchise back in December.

"People move on for various reasons, and Jon's very busy," he said. "He's going to do 'Cowboys And Aliens,' and he has a ton of other projects on his slate, so he's fine. I don't actually know what happened, I'm kind of out of that loop."

Well, now you are in the loop, unlike Mr. Cheadle. I don't think I can cram anymore Avenger's news in here.

The Avengers is set to be released 05.04.2012