Ending a momentous and event filled day at San Diego's Comic-Con 2010 today, both Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Downey, Jr. introduced the entire star-studded cast of Marvel Studios 2012 release "The Avengers."
Calling the picture more ambitious than "Inception," Downey Jr. made news by announcing the long rumored additions of recent Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton a.ka. the bow-welding Hawkeye and Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner, better known for his monstrous alter-ego The Incredible Hulk. The duo join Downey, Jr., who became a worldwide superstar after the success of the first "Iron Man," Scarlett Johansson as The Black Widow, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Chris Evans as Captain America and newcomer Chris Hemsworth as Thor.
The panel also featured the official announcement of comic book fan favorite Joss Whedon ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Firefly") as the film's director.
The "surprise" announcement had been buzzed about for weeks, but was in question after the studio decided not to welcome Edward Norton back as Bruce Banner following a difficult time on the 2008 hit "The Incredible Hulk."
[(L-R)
Robert Downey Jr., Clark Gregg, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Director
Joss Whedon, Producer and Marvel Studios' President
Kevin Feige from the motion picture "MARVEL STUDIOS' THE AVENGERS" in which Earth's Mightiest Heroes including Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Nick Fury and Agent Coulson assemble together on screen for the first time.]
Quote:
After a long, crazy day at Comic-Con, weary fans got a surprise that made all the lines and bizarre incidents worth it: They met their Avengers!
At the tail end of the action-packed day (after a real-life blood bath over a seating dispute), Hall H patrons got their first looks at Chris Evans as Captain America and Chris Hemsworth as Thor, repping the two officially scheduled films on the Marvel Studios agenda.
Even if all they got was a glimpse of Evans in costume test footage as Captain America, fans screamed their support at the mere sight of the beloved WWII hero in red, white and blue. Director Joe Johnston, demurring that he'd only been in production for about a week, nevertheless played a rough cut of a scene in which Hugo Weaving (as Nazi baddie Red Skull, sans actual red skull) searches for a mysterious item that links Captain America to Marvel's other 2011 property, Thor.
Then, director Kenneth Branagh brought his cast on stage to premiere the first trailer for Thor, which depicts the son of Odin as he embarks on his path from disgraced demigod to earth-bound hero—with plenty of punching, kicking and smashing along the way. Branagh's Thor trailer also included lots of Natalie Portman (as Thor's love interest, Jane Foster, whom Portman described as a "frazzled, down to earth, grounded woman) and scenes hinting at his recruitment into the Avengers.
But wait, the panel wasn't over!
Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige played a surprise clip for the capacity crowd featuring a familiar voice and the single, tantalizing image of the Avengers logo. As palpitations rippled through Hall H, the owner of that voice—Samuel Jackson—sauntered onstage, bringing the entire geek collective screaming to their feet.
Jackson, channeling his Marvel alter ego Nick Fury, introduced the members of the superhero team the Avengers, who'll get their own standalone film that brings worlds within the Marvel universe together onscreen for the first time.
Clark Gregg, Scarlett Johansson, Hemsworth, Evans and Robert Downey, Jr. joined Jackson on stage. Downey, a Comic-Con favorite, took the podium to crack a joke about the day's shocking Hall H incident ("Don't stab anyone before I'm done talking," he quipped) and to introduce three more members of the planned Avengers film, a comic book-blending movie that he deemed "more ambitious than Inception."
The entire population of Hall H squealed with excitement (yes, fanboys squeal!) as Downey introduced Academy Award nominee Jeremy Renner as Avengers archer Hawkeye. Then, confirming online whispers and Deadline's casting scoop, Mark Ruffalo joined everyone on stage as the new Bruce Banner/Hulk, officially replacing Ed Norton in the role.
Rounding out the Avengers mania, director Joss Whedon came out to thank fans for their support, and suddenly all of those hours spent waiting in lines wrapped around the convention center didn't seem quite so bad.
|
The only members missing from Earth's Mightest Heroes were the characters of The Wasp and Ant-Man. Both were part of the first "Avengers" team in the 1960s story that found the heroes uniting against a common foe, but it appears they won't be primary figures in the first movie version of the super hero group.
The ensemble action epic will be released on May 4, 2012 and is expected to begin shooting sometime in the spring of 2011.
It will be preceded by Marvel's "Thor" next May and "Captain America: The First Avenger" approximately a year from now.
And finally, we have the fantastic new Avengers logo -
