Captain America: The Winter Soldier will finally be released in the US this Friday (I'm sure if Cap were real, he'd have a problem with his film being released abraod first before hitting theaters back home) but the cameras are already rolling on Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Talking to Joblo, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige stated:
"I don’t want to give too much away but it is very much a continuation of this story line and sort of going back into THE AVENGERS fold. Steve is now torn between is he just a soldier? You know there is a scene in WINTER SOLDIER where Anthony Mackie asks, “Well what would you want to do if you are not a soldier anymore?” and part of his journey in THE AVENGERS is to answer that question."
And on Avengers: Age of Ultron as a whole, where do Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) stand? These are two characters that don't have solo films post-Avengers and who have been largely absent from Phase II of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
"I would love to do [Incredible Hulk 2] with Mark Ruffalo. But part of the fun of AGE OF ULTRON was saying, you’ve seen another IRON MAN adventure before, you see another THOR adventure and another CAP adventure, but we haven’t seen the Green Goliath again. So that was important in the characters you haven’t seen – Hulk being one of them and Hawkeye being one of them – ULTRON will make up for it. They have very big parts in AGE OF ULTRON. "
As the head of Marvel Studios, Feige obviously has a lot of control over the general direction the Marvel Universe but on Age of Ultron, there's Joss Whedon, a director who's coming off the biggest film in decades. Who has more control on the direction of the sequel?
"Both. It really is both. The only way we can work is with a very, very intense collaboration. And I think Joss was aware of that when he signed up for us the first time. It’s still the case this time. But to his credit, he hasn’t said, I directed the third highest grossing movie of all time, I don’t need anybody. He is very, very collaborative and he is also very, very, very good. Just like the Russo’s and like James Gunn right now on GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY. We are very lucky to work with people that are so collaborative with us and can elevate our initial idea. Even to elevate something in the way that we weren’t expecting. That’s their job and the best of them are able to do that very, very well. There are things that Joss is doing in AGE OF ULTRON that will be amongst the best elements that we’ve ever brought to the screen."
For more from Feige, head over to Joblo.com to read the full interview. Captain America: The Winter Soldier opens wide this Friday in the US. Avengers: Age of Ultron will arrive May 1, 2015.
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