Phase Two of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe is about to kick off with Shane Black‘s Iron Man 3 hitting theater screens everywhere on May 3rd. The production team at Marvel studios is still hard at work on the other pieces of Phase Two, The Avengers 2, Thor 2, Captain America 2, and the new comer to the bunch, Guardians of the Galaxy.

The President of Production at Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige, recently talked with the Italian magazine Best Movie about why the studio decided to include Guardians to the Phase Two movie roster:

“[For a] long time that we wanted to bring in a movie and adventure set entirely in space. We immediately liked the idea of making a movie based on a comic mostly unknown by people [...] that present[ed] various superheroes in one movie.

“Although it’s set up from another part of the universe, a human will be in a superhero role of Peter Quill, played by Chris Pratt. There will be lots of characters: from a sexy warrior to an animated tree [to] a raccoon with a gun. It’s a unique franchise and we are pleased that it’s so different from what we have done so far.”

While the majority of the work being done today is focused on Phase Two, some are looking forward to Phase Three and which established characters will return.

“Currently, the third phase is still developing. 99.9% of our time is used for Phase 2, the development of ‘The Avengers 2′ and the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ keeps us very busy. Definitely we’re not leaving aside the old glories and we can also see familiar faces such as Iron Man, Thor and Captain America.”

Along side the already established movie characters some more comic book favorites are joining the lineup. Edgar Wright’s long-discussed Ant-Man and word is that Doctor Strange (A favorite of Feige) will be making a, hopefully triumphant, return to the big screen.

Yep, there was a Doctor Strange TV movie back in 1978 starring Peter Hooten as Dr. Stephen Strange, Sir John Mills as Lindmer “The Ancient One”, Clyde Kusatsu as Wong, and Jessica Walter as Morgan Lefay. You can take a look at part one below, it’s painful, but really makes one wonder at what today’s special effects wizards can do with the subject matter that were impossible back when this was made.

“Dr. Strange! I love the aura of mystery that surrounds this superhero and the magical world that surrounds him. We’ve never faced anything like this and there is a lot of material that we could exploit. I would love to also see a new superhero in the ranks of the Avengers. We shall see!”

Phase Three is scheduled to commence after the release of The Avengers 2 in May 2015, while Dr. Strange has yet to officially receive a release date. Which movies are you most looking forward to? Is there a character that you’d like to see that has not been on screen yet?

Iron Man 3 releases May 3rd, 2013, Thor: The Dark World on November 8th, 2013, Captain America: The Winter Soldier on April 4th, 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy on August 1st, 2014, The Avengers 2 on May 1st, 2015, Ant-Man on November 6th, 2015, and Doctor Strange sometime after that.

Via: Screenrant

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There’s big news hitting the Internet about Marvel Studios upcoming sequel, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Robert Redford is in talks to join the cast. Sources are saying that Redford would play an older member of the super secret government spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D..

If you recall Ed Brubaker‘s Winter Soldier story line than you know that Bucky Barnes, Cap’s sidekick, was not killed in World War II, but recovered and brain washed by the Soviets, who then turned Bucky into the Winter Soldier; a super-secret-soviet-spy-assassin.

Perhaps Redford’s character will be the agent who has been trying to track down the Winter Soldier all those years or he could be playing a character much like the Gareth Mallory Skyfall role played by Ralph Fiennes.   Mallory was a government liaison to the spy department, that later became M’s replacement in the James Bond movie.

Joe and Anthony Russo are directing the movie, which stars Chris Evans, Sebastian Stan, Emily VanCamp, Anthony Mackie, Scarlett Johansson, Frank Grillo, Cobie Smulders, and Samuel L. Jackson.

What do you think about this news? We got Tommy Lee Jones in the first Captain America movie, if nothing else it does give younger fans a talking point to convince their mom to take them to the movie.

Via: THR

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Iron Man 1 & 2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America and The Avengers, was a tour de force in silver screen superiority by Marvel/Disney. As a sign of rinse, lather and repeat, Marvel is doing it all over again with it’s next phase of films.

Their cinematic excellence, in super hero films,  will be tested in Iron Man 3, Thor 2, Captain America 2, Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers 2. If all goes as planned, and it very well should, Marvel will then implement it’s 3rd phase.

Phase 3: Let’s get weird…

Marvel’s talking head Kevin Feige (pronounced “fayGAY”) spoke with MTV News about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Little big man and something strange in the neighborhood…

Ant-Man is definitely part of Phase Three. Like Iron Man 3, it’s certainly set in the Marvel Universe, but it’s also through the lens of Edgar Wright — which is the only reason we’re making the movie. [...] It’s very much an Ant-Man origin movie from the perspective of Edgar Wright and his co-writer Joe Cornish. It will of course be firmly planted in the MCU, but a different corner than we’ve seen before.

While Phase One culminated in the formation of the Avengers, and Phase Two will lead up to the Avengers sequel, Phase Three seems to be, well, a little stranger.

So much of the stories we’re telling [right now] is about the core Avengers characters we’ve now met, and they’ll be evolving in big, surprising ways, in Cap’s next movie and Thor’s next movie and of course in Iron Man 3, as we get them all into the next Avengers film. Beyond that… Ant-Man is the only one officially announced, but you probably don’t have to look too far to guess at the next list of characters we’re toying with and beginning to develop.

And that, Feige confirmed, includes Doctor Strange.

Doctor Strange, which I’ve been talking about for years, is definitely one of them. He’s a great, original character, and he checks the box off this criteria that I have: he’s totally different from anything else we have, just like Guardians of the Galaxy. He’s totally different from anything we’ve done before, as is Ant-Man, which keeps us excited.

This is all well and good. But, honestly Marvel, I’m surprised at you. Doctor Strange is getting a movie before Black Panther? I’m not trying to pull a race card or anything, but I guess white guys with epic mustachios will always come before a brother, right?

Although, I must say, I’m far more excited about the sorcerer supreme than poor wittle Ant-Man. I, for one, don’t see the appeal in a microscopic sized dude running through air ducts and shit. On the other hand, Disney’s take on wife beating should be… interesting.

Source: MTV News

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While Captain America: The First Avenger wasn’t the stunning “marvel” fans expected, many people liked the connection between Steve Rogers and British agent, Peggy Carter. Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell both played their roles wonderfully, but with Cap’s forced cryogenic freeze and revival in the 21st century we never got to see what could have been – and we never will.

Viewers of The Avengers deleted scenes will know Peggy is alive and well, just a little old for Rogers. He might not want to show her his bald eagle is what I’m getting at. Unless Hayley is willing to undergo some prosthetic facial work for Captain America: The Winter Soldier her cameo is non-existent and will require recasting by directors Anthony and Joe Russo. According to TimeOut however, Atwell will have no part in The Winter Soldier whatsoever.

Now this isn’t due to casting issues or scheduling conflicts with Atwell, she simply will not return. Hit the jump for her response.
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Welcome to another evening addition of “NerdBastards Latest Marvel Movie Rumors.”  Today on the agenda – Captain America 2 and Avengers 2.  According to GeekTyrant, there’s a guy by the name of Roger Wardell that has an inside track on what’s going on with all things Marvel “Phase 2”.  And according to Wardell’s tweeting, he has some news concerning the aforementioned movies’ stories.

Best to be warned, if these rumors are true, then they are actually spoilers.  Read at your own risk.

First the Avengers 2 tweets:

Inside News: The Masters of Evil will feature in The Avengers 2.

Inside News: The Avengers was about assembling to save the world, but in Avengers 2 the team will be assembling to save themselves.

And next, Captain America: The Winter Soldier:

Inside News: Captain America 2 will feature flashbacks of Black Widow’s past and her complicated relationship with the Winter Soldier.

But that’s all you get for now, dear readers.  Check back in a few days (or possibly hours) for all the latest leaking out from between the cracks of Hollywood.

Thanks to GeekTyrant for the update.

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There’s lots  of casting details coming out for Disney & Marvel‘s latest Captain America sequel Captain America: The Winter Soldier. First up is the casting of Frank Grillo (The Grey, Warrior) in the role of villain Crossbones.

Crossbones was created by writer Mark Gruenwald and artist Kieron Dwyer and started his criminal career under the tutelage of the henchmen trainer and villain Taskmaster, raising through the ranks to become an instructor at the Taskmaster school.  He ended up working for the Red Skull.

Some other well known faces will make appearances in the Captain America: The Winter Soldier sequel, reprising their roles from The Avengers are Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill. Also confirmed to be returning, as was long rumored, is Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes.

This is coming together and I expect this movie will really establish the S.H.E.I.L.D. importance in the Marvel Movie Universe, tying together the various heroes and villains.

Winter Soldier is one of my favorite story lines and I have high hopes that the story will translate well to the big screen. What do you think about these casting updates?

The film stars Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America, and Anthony Mackie in the role of the Falcon, directed by Anthony & Joe Russo, Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits theater screens on April 4, 2014.

Via: Comingsoon

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The folks working on Captain America: The Winter Soldier are busy toiling away looking for faces to fill roles, and one role that looks like it may be filling up soon is that of the character Crossbones.  Who’s the lucky winner?  According to a series of tweets from both the actor and others, Frank Grillo (Prison Break) is the top man in the running.

In case you don’t know, Crossbones is a top-notch assassin and henchman for The Red Skull.  He also happens to be the guy who “assassinates” Steve Rogers during the post-Civil War storyline.  They could be using him as a warm-up villain before Cap has to take on the titular Winter Soldier, or perhaps even setting up something for a third Captain America flick.

Either way, we still have a year-and-a-half to wait, since Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier doesn’t show up til April 4^th, 2014.

Thanks to BleedingCool for the heads-up.

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Today, we here at the elite Nerdbastards news collective of the motherland bring you more information concerning the upcoming Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Since the movie is still in its early stages, Marvel Studios is putting together a cast.  And though very few have as-of-yet been positively confirmed, there are a few front-runners that are looking very likely.

The two main roles they need to fill are that of the female lead and, of course, a nasty villain for the Captain to square off against.  Several names are flying around, but some stand out above the rest.

As far as the female lead goes, it’s looking very much like Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) is the favorite.  She’s thought to be in contention for the role of Sharon Carter, niece of Peggy Carter from the first film.  Though that too is still a rumor, the fact that Sharon is one of Captain A’s main love interests in the comics makes it one of those rumors that might actually be true.

When it comes to the main villain, there are two familiar faces contending in the final rounds.  Josh Holloway of Lost fame and the almighty Game of Thrones bastard, Nikolaj Coster Waldau.  No word on what their role will be quite yet.

These folks will be joining Anthony Mackie as The Falcon and a returning Scarlett Johansson as the Black Widow.

There is one individual who will not likely be making a return, however – Hugo Weaving as The Red Skull.  Not that they planned on bringing him back immediately, but Weaving has expressed his opinion that he’d rather not play the classic Captain America villain ever again.

Or, in his own words:

I [signed a multi-picture deal] for Captain America. I think the tendency, with those films, would be to probably not bring a villain back. They might for The Avengers, but I didn’t think I’d be in CaptainAmerica 2 or 3. I don’t think Red Skull will be there. And it’s not something I would want to do again. I’m glad I did it. I did sign up for a number of pictures and I suppose, contractually, I would be obliged to, if they forced me to, but they wouldn’t want to force someone to do it, if they didn’t want to. I think I’ve done my dash with that sort of film. It was good to do it and try it out, but to be honest, it’s not the sort of film I seek out and really am excited by. As an actor, to do all sorts of different films is great. It stretches you in different ways. But, I increasingly like to go back to what I used to always do, which is to get involved with projects that I really have a personal affiliation with.

Oh well.  Although Weaving did a decent job in the first flick, who really wants to see the same villain pop up over and over again, especially where there are so many more stories to tell in the Captain America universe?

Check out the Captain when he finally makes his way back to the big screen again on April 4^th, 2014.

Thanks to geektyrant and ComicBookMovie for sharing the love.

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Really past the title do we need more? Ok, I suppose in the spirit of fair and balanced reporting there are other actresses being considered for the female lead opposite Chris Evans in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Deadline is reporting that Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones), Jessica Brown Findlay (Downton Abbey), Teresa Palmer (Warm Bodies), and Imogen Poots (Fright Night, Knight Of Cups) are in line to lose the role to the beloved Annie from TV’s Community.

What? Is it wrong that I think that Brie is perfect for… whatever role this is? How about this little insider tip, former Community producer/writers Joe and Anthony Russo are directing the sequel to 2011′s Captain America: First Avenger. Still not convinced that the insanely wonderful Alison Brie is perfect for nameless love interest to the Star Spangled Man? Well then, allow me to present my evidence:

feel free to tweet this to Alison herself to show we support her… I would, but you know… court orders and all.

Oh yeah, and according to Variety’s Jeff Sneider Scarlett Johansson will show up as Black Widow, so there.

Source: /Film

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Comic book fans were all in a flurry of excitement, when the tagline for Captain America 2 was announced at this years San Diego Con. Captain America: The Winter Soldier means directors Joe and Anthony Russo are tackling one of the most recognized characters and story lines from Captain America’s history. Oh, joy!

Now, any comic book fan-boy worth a damn, knows who The Winter Soldier is, and what it means to see his story come to life in the Captain sequel. But, what about the common folk… the general -non geeky- populous? These know-nothings of comic lore, are obviously confused by all their nerdy friends/ co-workers talking about the unforgiving, unmerciful, Russian assassin kicking ass in the Marvel universe. Just who is this “winter soldier” and why should they care?

Well, our friends at IGN have the hook-up. They’ve made a video detailing a comprehensive history of the Winter Soldier’s back-story and his place in the Marvel comics.

After viewing, you and your newly informed peeps will now be able to debate together on how exactly the Winter Soldier’s story is going to play out in Cap 2.

Obviously, the presumed-dead Bucky comes back to life as a super assassin, but what about all that other cooky comic history? All that Wolverine and Cap death stuff will be axed, right? The filmmakers will no doubt go in a different direction with their cinematic adaptation.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is scheduled to open April 4, 2014.

Source: IGN

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