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Marvel Phase Two: To Include ANT MAN, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY and More?
With the culmination of “Marvel Phase One” from Marvel Studios leading to the box office record breaking The Avengers, it should come as no surprise that the team is hard at work at “Phase Two”…and the rumors and information have broken hard this week.
Earlier this week, all we knew for sure was coming down the pike, we’d have Iron Man 3, Thor 2 and Captain America 2 and a rumored theatrical interpretation of Black Panther.
Then, this week, details were flying all around, so lets go over the latest news, and remember, take it all with a grain of salt, as nothing is officially revealed.
On Monday, the team at The Playlist had a special edition of their podcast, which included insider information about the future of Marvel Studios - here’s a summary of what was said:
Iron Man 3 is all about Ben Kingsley as a different interpretation of the Mandarin. Â SHIELD will have a continued presence in the movie. There was some talk about a Kiss Kiss Bang Bang reunion with Val Kilmer as the Coulson replacement, but instead, Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) will return from The Avengers.Now, a lot of that sounds like some great educated guesses, with the Punisher and Pegg as Ant Man rumors sounding a little too fanboyish, but could make for a very nice Phase Two were it to be true.Thor 2 features the Executioner and the Enchantress as the lead villains, and will apparently introduce Dr. Stephen Strange to the Marvel Theatrical Universe, as a colleague of Jane’s.
Captain America 2 was apparently going to be about him tackling a terrorist organization, and reintroduce the Punisher, emphasizing the divide between Cap and Frank Castle. This was scrapped, and instead we’re looking at a movie with Armin Zola and Winter Soldier as the main villains, and a supporting cast including most of SHIELD (including Nick Fury, Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Sharon Carter, to be played by Haley Atwell).
Ant Man is still a go, and may be a part of the post-credits scene for Iron Man 3, with Wright directing. Word is Wright’s camp is pushing hard for Simon Pegg as Ant Man.
The Avengers 2 is looking to add Dr. Strange, Ant Man, Wasp and Black Panther or Luke Cage to the roster of heroes.
Then today, all hell broke loose. Three big scoops about the future of Marvel Studios.
First came from Latino Review, who broke the Black Panther news originally.
The big rumored project to be announced at San Diego Comic Con this Summer? Guardians of the Galaxy.
The team, sort of a cosmic Avengers, is the focus of a new push within Marvel Comics proper, and is rumored to be getting a big headlining series from star writer Brian Michael Bendis.  This is apparently going to lead to the film’s release in 2014.  The script, which is described as “incredible”, is said to have Thanos as the villain (making the credits tag in The Avengers a lead in to the film), and will lead into The Avengers 2.
Then, came a surprise - the first Disney/Marvel animated project -Â Big Hero 6.
Not sure who they are? Don’t worry, they’re not the biggest name heroes within Marvel. They’re a team of Japanese teenagers based underneath an amusement park, who haven’t had the best exposure (a few short lived series, alongside a return in Amazing Spider-Man earlier this year), but it’s said to be the first Disney animated Marvel film. Credit to Blue Sky Disney for that scoop.
Finally, just as I was about to write this post, new word on Ant Man.
The Hollywood Reporter broke exclusive news that Edgar Wright has just wrapped on shooting test footage for a film about the size changing hero. As they rightly point out, many times, test footage is shot, but goes nowhere, but after years of rumors, it’s nice to see some level of movement.
The fact is, all of these rumors could be wrong. None may pan out, but eyes now are locked onto Marvel Studio’s panel appearance at San Diego Comic Con this year, where we are supposed to get final word on the future of the Marvel Theatrical Universe. It really could be anything at this point, and I can’t wait to see what happens.
Thursday June 28, 2012