This summer has undoubtedly been the summer of the superhero when it comes to movies, with Marvel’s The Avengers and The Amazing Spider-Man and DC’s The Dark Knight Rises becoming three of the biggest hits of the year. Seeing as how The Avengers claimed the record of biggest opening weekend ever with over $200 million, Marvel isn’t slowing down with its upcoming barrage of films. Here’s a quick rundown of what’s to come in the foreseeable future.
Summary: 2013 will see the saga of Tony Stark continue, as Iron Man 3 introduces Tony’s most prominent villain, The Mandarin, who will be played by Ben Kingsley, with Robert Downey Jr. reprising his role as Tony Stark.
Nerd Fact: Early shots of the movie have shown a red, white and blue version of Iron Man’s armor, which looks suspiciously like the armor of Iron Patriot, a name taken on by Norman Osborn (also known as the Green Goblin) when he stole plans from Tony Stark.
Release Date: Iron Man 3 is set for April 24, 2013.
Summary: Hugh Jackman is back in summer 2013 as Wolverine in the sequel to 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine, titled simply The Wolverine. Logan, AKA Wolverine, goes to Japan to train with a samurai warrior, and faces off against Viper, a female assassin.
Nerd Fact: Logan has an illegitimate son named Daken, whom he had with a Japanese woman. Daken isn’t confirmed for the movie, but it’s definitely possible we could see something referencing/revealing him.
Release Date: The Wolverine will be out July 26, 2013.
Summary: Filling out the lineup for 2013 is the Mighty Avenger himself, Thor, in Thor: The Dark World. Very little is known about the plot of the sequel to 2011’s Thor, other than the fact that the entire cast is reprising their roles, and the role of villain may go to Malekith the Accursed, which means we may see Thor and his brother Loki teaming up to take down a larger threat.
Nerd Fact: The role of Fandral, one of Thor’s friends, will now be played by Zachary Levi, star of the now-defunct NBC series Chuck.
Release Date: Thor: The Dark World comes out November 6, 2013.
If the rumors hold true, 2014 will become Marvel’s most filled year to date, with a record four films to debut. Information is scarce, but here’s what Marvel’s divulged so far.
Summary: The sequel to 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger, titled Captain America: The Winter Soldier, will show Cap teaming up with his friend and sidekick, Bucky Barnes, also known as the Winter Soldier.
Nerd Fact: Anthony Mackie, who co-starred in The Hurt Locker, is in talks to appear as the Falcon, Marvel’s original black superhero.
Release Date: Captain America: The Winter Soldier is currently set for April 4, 2014.
Summary: It’s surprising to see a sequel be announced this quickly, but the tentatively titled Amazing Spider-Man 2 is already in production. Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone will reprise their roles as Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy, respectively, but no villain has been confirmed yet…
Nerd Fact: …however, if you stayed after the credits for The Amazing Spider-Man, it showed a mysterious figure in the shadows, who is rumored to be Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin.
Release Date: Amazing Spider-Man 2 is set for May 2, 2014.
Summary: X-Men: First Class was one of the best-reviewed X-Men movies when it came out in 2011, which prompted 20th Century Fox to start production on X-Men: Days of Future Past, the sequel. It’s been described by the producers as “The Dark Knight” to First Class‘ “Batman Begins,” meaning it’ll explore the story and action more than setting up the characters.
Nerd Fact: Even though the movie has barely gone into production, Hugh Jackman has already said he’d love to make another cameo as Wolverine, as he did in First Class.
Release Date: No release date is set for Days of Future Past, but expect it in 2014.
Summary: If you haven’t heard of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s okay. We still love you. Guardians of the Galaxy is a very obscure and strange team, comprised of Star-Lord, a human pilot from Earth, Groot, a sentient tree, Rocket Raccoon, a kick-butt talking raccoon, and more. The Guardians of the Galaxy are, in basic terms, the Avengers of space. In fact, one of the Guardians owns Captain America’s shield, as the team takes place in the future.
Nerd Fact: If you stayed after the credits for The Avengers, you may have seen a mysterious-looking purple guy in the end scene. His name is Thanos, and he is the god of death. His subordinate tells him in that end scene, “to face humans is to court Death.” In the comics, Thanos is in love with Mistress Death, the Grim Reaper. The battle against Thanos is guaranteed to be intense, as he has control over nearly every aspect of existence while in possession of the Infinity Gauntlet, a mystical glove, which is kept in Asgard, the home of Thor. It’ll be interesting to see how this all ties together leading up to 2015.
Release Date: Guardians of the Galaxy will be out August 1, 2014.
2015 is a pivotal year because it’s when The Avengers 2 will debut. Director Joss Whedon will return to direct the sequel, and he’s already give some thoughts about it.
“Normally you would think a sequel would be bigger, but I was thinking I’d like to do the opposite and go smaller. When I presented that idea I was asked in return ‘So you’re going to turn down the volume on the movie?’, but that’s not what I meant at all. Of course new characters will be added. But having just met this wonderful cast, even I’ve just begun groping for a demonstration of what kind of synergy they have together. I’ve said that it’s important to put in not only necessarily always a large scale, but a lot of love. Movies can be on a grand scale but also more personal. I’ve already touched on that, so I don’t really need to go into it again. The issue is really just how deep can I delve in,” Whedon told Gizmodo.
2015 will also hopefully see the debut of Deadpool, the Merc With a Mouth. Deadpool has a mangled film history in that while he appeared in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, that really wasn’t him. In Wolverine, Deadpool was created by fusing mutant superpowers together, including laser eyes and the ability to teleport, neither of which he really has; in addition, his mouth was sealed shut, which is the absolute opposite of his personality. In reality, Deadpool is a trained assassin with a tendency to run his mouth, make pop culture references, and acknowledge that he’s in a comic book. He also has a healing factor which makes him unable to die, as he can heal any injury. Ryan Reynolds will still play him, as he did in Wolverine, but the two movies won’t be connected at all. No release date has been announced, but it’s expected in 2015.
And finally, one of the strangest announcements to come out of Marvel in a while: Ant-Man will be getting his own movie. This obscure superhero is a member of the Avengers, and the movie will be his film debut. Scientist Hank Pym creates a formula that allows him to manipulate his size and, uh, communicate with ants. Though his powers may seem laughable, Ant-Man is being directed by Edgar Wright, director of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World and Shaun of the Dead, who is known for his special effects prowess. Marvel hasn’t announced a release date yet, but seeing as how he could show up in Avengers 2, Ant-Man will definitely be out by 2015, maybe even sooner.
What Marvel movie are you most excited for? Let us know in the comments!
