The question of whether or not Joss Whedon would be returning for the next Avengers film didn’t really feel like a cliffhanger.
This is probably because there was no release date set up for the sequel, unlike Hunger Games: Catching Fire, which has an ironclad opening date: November 22, 2013. So there was just an open ended waiting game for Joss Whedon to say yea or nay.
Well it was finally announced he will indeed be back for part two, as well as for a Marvel series because he’s got an exclusive deal with the comics giant. With the announcement that Whedon’s back has come much speculation in the geekosphere as to when the next Avengers could actually be in theaters, because these days release dates are announced at least two years in advance.
Wonder no more, because word hit the ‘Net Avengers 2 will be out on May 1. 2015. I doubt any of us know what we’re doing that day, I barely know what I’m doing tomorrow, but this is the current release date etched in stone, and let’s just see who wants to place their tent pole flag on that date. (Go ahead, we dare you).
Actually, that game of chicken won’t happen for a while, but I doubt any other major studio’s going to screw around with the next Avengers flick, especially considering how much money this superhero team up made. (At current count, $1.46 billion world-wide, $617 million domestic).
So if you’re planning your Marvel superhero flick calendar, we’re going to to be seeing (in order) Iron Man 3 on May 3, 2013, Thor: The Dark World on November 8, 2013, Captain America: The Winter Soldier on April 4, 2014, and Guardians of the Galaxy on August 1, 2104, then Avengers 2 the following summer.
This is what Entertainment Weekly is calling “Marvel’s Phase Two slate” of films, and the shadow of The Avengers should loom large over these flicks, because they’re all part of the team, and it will be interesting to see how much audiences will go back to see these heroes and their stories interconnect.
As Collider reminds us, there may also be an Ant Man movie shooting in 2014, which could hit theaters right before The Avengers, and Guardians of the Galaxy may help set up the villain for Avengers 2, Thanos. Interestingly, Avengers 2 will be in theaters only 1092 days after the release of the first one. That’s not too long to wait, is it?
