An umbrella won’t help. Hot off the $100 million opening of Iron Man (nice job Steve!), the ever powerful Marvel Studios opened its war chest up today, revealing the company’s in-house feature roll out through 2011. Here’s what it looks like…
2010
April 30th: Iron Man 2
June 4th: Thor (directed by Matthew Vaughn)
2011
May 6th: The First Avenger: Captain America
July (day N/A): The Avengers
So, two Avengers films in 2011, eh? Unprecedented. DC’s Justice League is bummed. In addition to the line-up above, Edgar Wright’s Ant-Man is still in the planning stages at the studio, and obviously June brings us The Incredible Hulk, followed by Punisher: War Zone in December. Sure, you could say today marks a new dawn for the superhero movie. It’s a shame that Fav doesn’t have an uncensored Twitter.
Discuss: Which of these Marvel films are you anticipating the most? Or, uh oh, are you over it? What do you think about two Avengers flicks in 2011?
via Yahoo! Finance
May 5th, 2008 at 9:29 am
anticipating 0 of these movies. When will the superhero trend die so we can get back to watching decent blockbusters?
May 5th, 2008 at 9:30 am
Pumped. Because I love comics.
May 5th, 2008 at 9:34 am
Pumped for several of these, but especially Captain America. I imagine whomever is cast in that role will have to film Cap and Avengers in a very short time frame (assuming he’s in both).
May 5th, 2008 at 9:45 am
As long as marvel is as involved as it was in Iron Man then I am in 10 bucks a pop. I can’t remember walking away from a comic book flick as happy as I was from Iron Man. Even the nit pick stuff I read on different sites could easily be argued against. I think the crux could be Hulk, if they can pull that off then avengers would be very doable.
May 5th, 2008 at 9:51 am
It depends on the line-up of the Avengers, should be interesting to see which character set they go with. Also, is Cap going to be set in modern times or in WW2? Personally I believe Captain America would work best as a period piece set during WW2, but that’s me. I also believed the Fantastic Four would’ve worked better set in the 60’s! (Oh wait, I was right about that one!)
May 5th, 2008 at 9:55 am
None of the above. They will excise and extract anything and everthing that made Iron Man a decent movie in the first place, and then be left scratching their toupes as to why the hell all of these subsequent films flopped big time. Because “Hollywood” and the major studios are run by unrivaled imbeciles. When they get it right it is almost always a fluke or an accident. The studio execs will then focus on exactly wrong reasons that something actually worked, multiply it times ten, and then be left clueless and dumbfounded as they pour more and more money into garbage, unable to figure out where they went wrong.
That felt good to say.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:04 am
its weird to see cap america labeled ‘1st avenger’, why not just call it cap america? things were going smooth with all the solo films, then have em release the avengers - but now i’m a little worried about the obvious direction cap will be heading in. it would’ve been really nice to see his as a ww2 time period thing - and maybe it still will be - its just that whole ‘1st avenger’ thing is weird.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:07 am
AVENGERS HANDS DOWN.
i dunno, im not completely sold on captain america and thor. just like dragon ball, i cant take them both seriously.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:07 am
I dont like the fact that the captain america movie has to have the tagline of a avengers add on, he should just have a stan alone movie and then be attached to the avengers project. plus that guy rufi can suck it.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:11 am
I understand they have a decent script for Thor but they even had time to write a decent script for Iron Man 2? All the publicity has hinted that whilst Favreau has had ideas and thus hinted them in the first movie, they were just ideas and not yet on put on paper in the form of a script.
Iron Man 2 has a lot of potential, but this potential comes from the opportunities they can do with the character and how well they write the script. They musn’t rush stuff!
May 5th, 2008 at 10:12 am
thor?
jesus christ thats going to flop hard.
also srsly, why so many godamn superhero movies
May 5th, 2008 at 10:12 am
FUCK. YES.
here’s to hoping they do these movies as well as Iron Man…
May 5th, 2008 at 10:21 am
Rufi, did you see Iron Man?
Also, will Iron Man 2 see Stark working with S.H.I.E.L.D.? If not, then it was bad timing to put Sam L. at the end of the first one.
How about this? Cap’s movie is set in WW2, and at the end they go with the frozen in ice thing, then start the Avengers film with his body being discovered. Could work.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Okay, maybe Ant-Man if they don’t tie Wright’s hands.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:26 am
I want to see Captain America the most. What I’d love to see? CA1 as a World War II story (maybe with Bucky?), battling the Red Skull. At the end of the film, he’s frozen until present day for CA2.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:27 am
CAPTAIN AMERICA better not be “Avenging” September 11th; that would be a horrid movie.
-goro-
May 5th, 2008 at 10:31 am
The rise of the Super Hero movie has done zero to stifle the continuing release of “blockbuster” movies. Have we forgotten Pirates, Transformers, The Day After Tomorrow, War of the Worlds, Shrek, Harry Potter, Bourne, Star Wars, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Cars, The Da Vinci Code? Those are the non-comic book blockbusters since 2004. (Just from the Top 5 Highest Grossing Films)
May 5th, 2008 at 10:42 am
I vote Thor.
Hopefully Vaughn gets his mega budget for this now that Iron Man has become a smash.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Robert, your comment about the major studios is well taken but doesn’t really apply here. The big deal with these movies is that Marvel is making them in-house now. Iron Man was their first stab at that, and it’s obviously been successful.
I assume the Avengers tag on the Cap title is just to raise brand awareness. The Avengers obviously aren’t as well known as the Justice League/Superfriends to the general public. They have, however, probably heard of Captain America. Oh, and I believe the Cap movie could very well be set in WWII and end with his being frozen per the classic storyline. If Marvel can put together a Cap movie that looks and feels like Saving Private Ryan, I’d be thrilled.
Fatality, I think the answer to “why so many godamn [sic] superhero movies” is that they’re profitable. If people stop paying to see them, studios will stop making them.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Doesn’t it suck that Marvel is trying out a new medium to tell their stories? I hate that they are the only movies that are coming out in theaters. I just hate it. I wish I had more of a choice than my theater showing nothing but Iron Man.
..oh wait.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:59 am
I must say it:
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE!!!!!!
May 5th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Can anyone answer something for me possibly? What time period will Captain America take place in with the movie?.. Will it be back in WWII where he becomes CA or will it be modern day or will it not stick to the comic at all and it will just be modern day and have him created now a days?
May 5th, 2008 at 11:05 am
@Rich
That’s good news. I haven’t been following it that closely. I hope that makes a real difference. These things seem to have a way of becoming self-sustaining entities when they franchise out and I worry that they will become too risk averse. Protecting the franchise at all costs becomes the order of the day. Negative returns ensue. Hopefully this indicates Marvel has a new model (i.e. listening to the “creative types”) for this so we can actually look forward to some more decent Marvel movies.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Also, off the marvel topic……I wish they would make a Preacher movie .. Maybe Evil Ernie.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Iron Man 2 Definatley is a stand out for me. Iron Man surpassed everything i ever though about it, and it instantly became my favourite film. Iron Man 2 is going to be bloody awsome!
Hulk looks ok, well better than the last one.
Thor should be interesting, as Thor obviously couldn’t fit into a modern film setting, as greek mythology isnt really prominent today… But Thor is one of my favourite Marvel Characters, so i’ll like it pretty much anyway.
I can pass on punisher, never really got into the original.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:19 am
Note that Punisher: War Zone is *not* being produced by Marvel. I just hope it’s better than the existing Punisher flicks. They were awful.
Rick C, I don’t believe any confirmation is available re: the setting of the Cap story. It’s widely believed to be a period film, however, to set up the Avengers flick to follow (i.e., they find him frozen and go from there). I suppose it’s possible they could turn him into a modern super soldier instead, but I don’t think Marvel would go that route. The WWII background and “man out of time” elements are too important to discard.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:24 am
Rich: Dolph Lundgren Punisher was terrific.
I’m most excited for Captain America but could do without the first Avenger heading. Isn’t that inaccurate anyway?
Also, I love the Jerk-off at the top of the thread talking about good summer blockbusters. Let’s see we had Armageddon, Deep Impact and Independence Day… Yeah, those weren’t complete shit.
Thankfully, most people on here are behind these movies. Can’t imagine how they’ll pull off a Thor movie.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:24 am
Is Wesley Snipes going to be out of jail in time for Black Panther??
May 5th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I think this is the climax year for the superhero movies … I have a feeling that it is just downhill from here.
No matter how cool the comics or cartoons were I just do not see the masses gathering for a guy in a tight fitting star spangled costume or some Norse God running around with Greenpeace spouting off cheesy lines. Granted I think Thor has a better chance than Cap does on the big screen, assuming the drastically change the characters persona.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:28 am
saving my money in hopes of Daddy Day Care 3!
May 5th, 2008 at 11:50 am
I was trying to explain this to a friend that loves Thor. Thee’s and Thou’s are not going to fly with the mass audience. Should it be changed? I really can’t say - thankfully I’m not the one to make those decisions. Cap should really be a WWII movie with it ending as S.H.I.E.L.D. or more likely a Stark R&D team discovering something in the ice.
New Hulk might be good - I can safely say Thor will be bad and if its anything more than crap be pleasantly surprised.
The problem with superhero movies is the same with any movie. Directors. X-Men 1-2 were decent/good - 3 had a new director who was trash and thus destroyed something I really had high hopes for. Nolan and Batman has been outstanding. Superman was as good as I think the Big Blue Boyscout really can be in film - not a director issue.
Spider-Man 3 really only flopped because (as I read it) Raimi didn’t like the Venom character and it was ‘forced’ on him. I blame that on Raimi as much as I love most his work. Venom who doesn’t refer to itself as ‘We’ is a poor representation.
Iron Man really felt like Batman Begins. A setup to a potentially great series. If just one piece falls though, the Avengers will crumble like the house of cards its looking to be. I think it is optimistic of me to think that 2-3 of these movies will be good, but it is simply too much to ask that they are all handled right and by people who KNOW the comics, not ‘kinda like them’.
Superhero movies won’t die out but the big guys are all used so it will be about the directors being amazing and producers for once in their lives not ruining movies trying to change them, and instead utilize hype to make money, not Xtreming everything to the point of suck.
May 5th, 2008 at 11:59 am
Wow cant believe they are actually going to be able to do this it would be interesting if they had them have fights against each other pitting characters that are so powerful against normal humans will get old it would be crazy to see hulk vs iron man on screen that would be a massive epic battle dont really know what to think just realy excited cannot wait for avengers
May 5th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
They took a little of the “Ultimates” universe for the Iron Man movie (namely Sam The Man as Nick Fury), and I think Thor will work if they take the Ultimate version (first and second). They modernized his speech and made him somewhat of a hippy/rich playboy type. He still claimed to be Thor, the Asgard God, but no one really believed or paid that much attention (until the end of that run). It worked well. He still got all the powers and the cool effect, but it was a little less cartoony and a little more approachable for the non comic fan. It would be similar to how they made a more believable world for the last Batman movie.
Personally, I am loving the latest Thor series, and it is with a somewhat stylized speech, and with the full pantheon, and even with the return of Dr. Donald Blake, but it all just works. It might not work for a mainstream audience as well though. Who knows, if Lord of the Rings can pull in the money it did, maybe a Thunder God has a chance.
May 5th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
@Nathaniel
“Rufi, did you see Iron Man?”
Yes I did and I did not like it. Robert Downey Jr. was awesome in it, no doubt. I love his charm he does in most of his movies (see: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) but it wasn’t enough to save the movie from the horribleness of Gwyneth Paltrow (who usually isn’t bad) and the fact that his first “big fight” was just against another big iron man…Seriously though, Pepper Potts ruined the movie for me.
May 5th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Captian America is going to be hilarious.
May 5th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I’m looking forward to all.
Having seen how well they can do it, I very much wish Marvel could have retained more control over the X-Men franchise. I’m still holding out for an announcement regarding an Age of Apocalypse adaptation, though.
Am I the only one who thinks Doctor Strange has great potential if it can ever get off the ground?
May 5th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Do Cap like he was done in the Ultimates and you’ve got a winner. Otherwise it may come off as cheesy. Do the same for Thor.
May 5th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Most important is that they don’t rush! And I think a serious mythological Thor film - ala lord of the rings meets clash if the titans - would be a force to be rockoned. Just imagine how fresh and new that would be! Complimented by a ‘private ryan-ish’ cap america film?!?! If marvel takes time, and doesnt follow a superhero formula with these next film, they could make history.
May 5th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
@ estrus
At this point, I’m sure Snipes is praying that a guy called Black Panther is not his jail mate.
May 5th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
I think a Captain America period film, if done like Band of Brothers or Saving Private Ryan, would totally rock and kick serious ass. I’m just concerned about bringing that character into the modern age, doesn’t seem to work. Although if they gave him the ULtimates treatment, that might help.
One concern that no one has mentioned is this, Hulk and Iron Man can easily hide behind CGI. What happens to Captain America and Thor? Those characters are who they are, they can’t hide behind effects. Hopefully someone at Marvel has a solution that makes sense.
May 5th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
basically…i fink the point tht marvel now have WAAAY more control ovr the film is the best thing evr…look at iron man, nd i feel EVERY1 will be pleasantly surprsied with new hulk.
gnna strt wiv thoughts bout hulk…btw herd rumours of rick jones and jennifer walters(she-hulk) in the sequel (parently ed norton has planned this to be a trilogy excluding avengers role) yh neway, i kno ppl are worrying bout the cgi..but i fink wen u see stills, and trailers on YOUTUBE its nevr the same, ppl who seen hulk traler in cinema actually sed it did look much bettr, the whole fugitive storyline i fink is wht will hold it together as tht intepretation of hulk makes the most sense…and wen theyr makin the films theyr all bout makin it ‘believeabl’ and ‘real’…and as this is as real as hulk can be.
also in their sequels which ther must be eh?(fact, if iron man dint make 70 mil within a certian time a sequel wudnt have been made…soo i fink a similar catch is prob gnna be on the hulk)..wud luv to see the return on the real abosobing man, carl crusher creel not tht shitty one in ANG Lee’s movie.
iron man 2 will rock obv
thor agen…very tough material to use hwevr ive read that the plan is to have the film set in asgard, and by tht reasoning makes me think it will work
cap A. - prob the most important film evr made for marvel, cos rly along wiv spidey, cap is the most important charcter wiv an important story…i believe they’lll have the film set after them finding him the ice/hwevr i believe they’ll change it for cryogenic freezing….and it will have a lot of flashbacks, like wht new hulk will have…this film needs to be epic!
AVENGERS MOVIE…oooh this is such dangerous ground wen u fink bout it…cos if not evn a minor success cud fuck up the continuity of the utha franchises, iron man, hulk, cap, thor etc….cos we all kno they hardly evr settle for 1 film of a charcter…but yh, if dne right cud be amazing, i fink they’d need to look at wht theyve dne wiv the currnt avengers films(the animated ones) cos the way they like put the story together and stuff from the books rly worked….like how *SPOILER* banner is a dr for shield and ment to working on summin for them but is actually tryna control the hulk, then wigs out and has to be defeasted by the uthas…was gd, like if they did the film hulk/banner shud rly just be in his banner form if u get me…nd iron man, shud almost be ther as tony stark- supplying tech and then steps in frm time to time
i fink ant man will be brill…but herd hes gnna use henry pym and scott lang…bad idea in my books, shud stick wiv 1 origin for the firts film and then inevitable sequel or trilogy mayb introduce him…bu hey thts jus me
etc etc
jus wht im finkin eh?
May 5th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
“CAPTAIN AMERICA better not be “Avenging” September 11th; that would be a horrid movie.”
Ahahaha. Check out The Ultimates, imo.
The Marvel movie continuity seems to be a really good merge of Ultimate Marvel and mainstream (from what we’ve seen with Iron Man and the previews of the Hulk), so I think if they keep that up with the movies leading up to the Avengers and the Avengers itself, they’ve got a goldmine. Realistically, though, I doubt they’re going to be able to sustain what they’ve got with Iron Man - that would require minimal bigwig interference, a flourishing of creativity and smart direction, acting, and special effects.
Ant-man is sort of a stupid idea for a full movie. Hank Pym’s a jackass and not in the ‘redeemed jackass with witty quips’ Tony Stark style. Not really a character people can get into.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
I’d really like to see all these films done well, but I think it’s going to be a really difficult task ’synchronizing” 5-ish different creative teams into a collective spanning 5+ years. Hope they can do it though.
And Spiderman and Wolverine have to be part of the team.
May 5th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
I’m willing to take a wait and see attitude on these…as much as the fanboy in me would like to see them made. Marvel has quite an unstable track record in movies so far. For every Iron Man, there’s a Howard the Duck.
And…’moviespartan’ - if you want your opinions to be taken seriously, use grown up words, ‘kay?
May 5th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Part of the reason why I liked Iron Man so much was because I could almost tell that Marvel made it themselves. You could tell they respected the characters. And they knew to go for credible people who knew what they were doing and loved the material. I dont think they’re looking to make a quick buck as much as they want to make a quality film that reflects their properties well. Sure it seems fast but I have faith. And I kinda wanna see a big budget movie in which Robert Downey Junior, Edward Norton and whatever big names they get for Thor and Captain America, and Ant-Man. It should be sweet.
May 5th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
I have every bit of faith in Edgar Wright. As one of the greatest directors of the past decade, he’ll make Ant-Man fantastic.
But my dad and I were talking about this just last Friday after I saw Iron Man. We both agreed that seeing on Captain America on the big screen would be…well, odd. I mean, he’ll look pretty ridiculous in that his costume. Ah, well. I guess I shouldn’t talk since I’m so stoked about Ant-Man.
Either way, I’ll see any Marvel movie that comes out.
Yes, I am a media wuss.
May 5th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
First of all, big congrats to Fav’s and Downey for giving Marvel Studios it’s running start.
Second, even though Cap is one of my favorites out of that list I still would am anticipating Thor and Ant-Man the most just to see how they can pull it off. Hoping for like an Ultimate Thor kind of origin…and also just see what the hell Edgar Wright is gonna do with a Marvel flick!
So exciting so exciting.
May 5th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
I’m all for Iron Man 2 and 3, but . . .
Iron Man was the laxative that has given Marvel a case of comic book diarrhea.
Oh, the humanity.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
As all of you know sammy j showed up in the new Iron man movie as the infamous Nick fury from S.H.E.I.L.D. As you might recall Nick Fury was also a world war 2 fighter but was injected with a serum that prolonged his age I think he has a key role key role in the upcoming Avengers and Captain America movies in that he is the key to combining the major players together. Also people havent taken into account why Iron man will be showing up in the new Incredible hulk movie, maybe to ask the hulk to join the avengers down the line. Also Captain America will probabley be filmed like a WWII film but he will end up being frozen in the Atlantic and Unthawed in the avengers movie.
But aside from that could you just imagine a WW2 catian america storming the beaches of Normandy, every things dark and gray. Blodd is flying every where but theres the RED,WHITE, and BLUE himself blazing through gunfire as a beckon of hope to all the soldiers around him thats one freaken awesome Captain America movie oh and dont forget the red skull
May 5th, 2008 at 10:16 pm
Oh and replying to Lotnrom about Doctor Strange that would be an awesome moving if they did it right and they need to keep that cape its just so awesome
May 5th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
wow lots of errors in that sentence woops
May 6th, 2008 at 1:08 am
OMG. Finally thor(^_^)
May 6th, 2008 at 5:39 am
Iron Man was far and above what I had expected. It had excellent pacing, a good plot, and all the geek-moments tossed in were excellently done. I am still in awe, 5 days later, how well RDj pulled off the part of Stark. To me, he IS Tony Stark. It was perfect.
That being said, I am looking forward to ALL of Marvel’s movies. I enjoy them for what they are - visual representations of comics that I grew up with as a kid. These comics are so wonderful because so many of them not just my childhood or yours, but generations.
Thor is definitely high on my list. I think that will be the most challenging of them all to produce, but I have faith that Marvel can pull it off.
But the Avengers movie - that’s the one that I am most intrigued by. All of those egos together, under one directing crew? It will be challenging to say the least. But again - I have faith in Marvel to pull it off, and am eagerly looking forward to several years of super-hero movies to come (both DC AND Marvel!).
But when it comes to Iron Man, I can safely say that it’s my new favorite super-hero movie. X-Men were my favorite growing up - but X-Men 3 really butchered it for me and left a seriously nasty taste in my mouth.
May 6th, 2008 at 8:07 am
“And…’moviespartan’ - if you want your opinions to be taken seriously, use grown up words, ‘kay?”
Hear hear! That post made me want to smack him. It’s like reading a transcript written in Britney Spears’ bullshit British accent. They’re called vowels. Use’em.
May 6th, 2008 at 8:39 am
Cap America could be awesome if it was set in WW2 rather than modern time. if its done seriously it could be very good. i also completely forgot about Punisher coming out
May 9th, 2008 at 11:23 am
You know? Thor can be done to absolute perfection. Seriously. I didn’t think so at first, but after looking at the big picture, it’s totally doable. Here’s how: Use the same approach as the one that we all seem to support for the Captain America Film. Make it a period piece that features the classic character and maybe include Asgard and his fellow Gods. Go all out, making it as fantastic as possible. Then in the Avengers film, have a modern-day Thor plucked right out of The Ultimates 1&2 played by the same actor (I think Kevin Durand is perfect for the role, you can catch him now playing bad-ass merc Martin Keamy on ABC’s ‘Lost’ or wait till next year to see him in ‘Wolverine: Origin’ as The Blob). I think it makes a lot of sense to see the progression of the character from Norse God to a God that needs to fit in with a humanity that has stopped believing in his kind. I LOVE Marvel for keeping things in house and finally giving us a chance to believe that these ideas that were once fantasy could even be remotely possible.
May 10th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
Where my Thundercats movie?