Are you as excited as I am?
Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger have all led to this. A massive mission that needs the combined strengths of some of the greatest heroes we’ve ever seen on the big screen. That’s a lot of pressure to deliver. Since Marvel announced their grand scheme to create a unified series of movies that belong to the same universe, people have speculated on the potential of an Avengers movie.
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THE HULK
Mark Ruffalo as
Dr. Bruce Banner / Hulk
A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a monster when enraged or excited. Ruffalo was cast after negotiations between Marvel and Edward Norton broke down. About replacing Edward Norton, Ruffalo said, "I'm a friend of Ed's, and yeah, that wasn't a great way for all that to go down. But the way I see it is that Ed has bequeathed this part to me. I look at it as my generation's Hamlet." About the character he stated, "He's a guy struggling with two sides of himself—the dark and the light—and everything he does in his life is filtered through issues of control. I grew up on the Bill Bixby TV series, which I thought was a really nuanced and real human way to look at the Hulk. I like that the part has those qualities". Regarding the Hulk's place on the team Ruffalo said, "He's like the teammate none of them are sure they want on their team. He's a loose cannon. It's like, 'Just throw a grenade in the middle of the group and let's hope it turns out well"! Ruffalo also told New York magazine that unlike previous incarnations, he will actually play the Hulk, "I'm really excited. No one's ever played the Hulk exactly, they've always done CGI. They're going to do the Avatar stop-action, stop-motion capture. So I'll actually play the Hulk. That'll be fun". About his preparation for the role Ruffalo joked, "I've lost 15 pounds and I've put another five on of just strapping, pure USDA beef... They want me mean and lean, but they don't want me big and buff"
CAPTAIN AMERICA
Chris Evans as
Steve Rogers / Captain America
A World War II veteran who was enhanced to the peak of human physicality by an experimental serum. Evans was cast as part of a deal to star in three Marvel films, in addition to The Avengers. Evans stated that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers explaining, "It’s just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You’ve got to imagine, it’s enough of a shock to accept the fact that you’re in a completely different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about... He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his brothers in arms, they’re all dead. He’s just lonely. I think in the beginning it’s a fish out of water scene, and it’s tough. It’s a tough pill for him to swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world." Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans remarked, "I think there's certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between myself and Tony Stark, they're polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet and they have to get along. They explore that, and it's pretty fun".
THOR
Chris Hemsworth as
Thor
The Norse god of thunder. Hemsworth was cast as part of a multiple movie deal. He had previously worked with Joss Whedon on The Cabin in the Woods. Hemsworth stated that he was able to maintain the strength he built up for Thor by increasing his food intake, consisting of a number of chicken breasts, fish, steak and eggs a day. When asked exactly how much, Hemsworth joked, "My body weight in protein pretty much!" About Thor's motivations Hemsworth remarked, "I think [Thor's] motivation is much more of a personal one, in the sense that it’s his brother that is stirring things up. Whereas everyone else, it’s some bad guy who they’ve gotta take down. It’s a different approach for me, or for Thor. He’s constantly having to battle the greater good and what he should do vs. it’s his little brother there... I’ve been frustrated with my brothers at times, or family, but I’m the only one who is allowed to be angry at them. There’s a bit of that."
A billionaire industrialist who seeks to pacify the world with a mechanical suit of armor of his own invention. Downey was cast as part of his four-picture deal with Marvel Studios, which includes Iron Man 2 and The Avengers. Downey stated that he initially pushed Whedon to make Stark the lead revealing, "Well, I said, ‘I need to be in the opening sequence. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but Tony needs to drive this thing.’ He was like, ‘Okay, let’s try that.’ We tried it and it didn’t work, because this is a different sort of thing, the story and the idea and the theme is the theme, and everybody is just an arm of the octopus."
NICK FURY, HAWKEYE & THE BLACK WIDOW
Scarlett Johansson as
Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow)
A highly trained spy working for the international peacekeeping organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. Whedon confirmed that Johansson's Romanoff would be the only female member of the Avengers, but not the only female character in the film. Regarding the character's abilities to measure up to her teammates Johansson recounted, "The other day we were doing this big reveal shot of all the Avengers. Thor has got his hammer, Cap’s got his shield, Hawkeye has his bow and arrow, and Hulk is huge. Then it pans over to me and I’ve got guns. Iron Man’s like, hovering above all of us, ready to go... I was like, ‘Joss… um… do I look okay holding these guns?’ and he responded 'She’s a total badass. She’s a killing machine.'"
Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton (Hawkeye)
A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and master archer known in the comics as "Hawkeye". Renner said it was a very physical role and that he trained physically and practiced archery as much as possible in preparation. About Hawkeye's dynamic with the Black Widow and place in the film, Renner stated, "The only sort of thing I cling to is the relationship of past experiences with Scarlett’s character, with them both being human. I can cling to that." However Renner said there’s no insecurity explaining, "He’s the only one who can really take down The Hulk with his tranq tip arrows. He knows his limitations. But when it comes down to it, there has to be a sense of confidence in any superhero.
The director of S.H.I.E.L.D., who was revealed in previous films to be coordinating the "Avenger Initiative". Jackson was brought to the project with a deal containing an option to play the character in up to nine Marvel films.
The Villain. Loki?
Tom Hiddleston as
Loki
The Norse god of mischief. In regard to his character's evolution from the film Thor, Hiddleston stated, "I think the Loki we see in The Avengers is further advanced. You have to ask yourself the question: how pleasant an experience is it disappearing into a wormhole that has been created by some kind of super nuclear explosion of his own making? So I think by the time Loki shows up inThe Avengers he's seen a few things." About Loki's motivations, Hiddleston remarked, "At the beginning of The Avengers, he comes to earth to subjugate it and his idea is to rule the human race as their king. And like all the delusional autocrats of human history, he thinks this is a great idea because if everyone is busy worshipping him, there will be no wars so he will create some kind of world peace by ruling them as a tyrant. But he is also kind of deluded in the fact that he thinks unlimited power will give him self respect so I haven't let go of the fact that he is still motivated by this terrible jealousy and kind of spiritual desolation".
Maria Hill
A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who works closely with Jackson's Nick Fury. Smulders, whom Joss Whedon once considered for his unproduced live-action Wonder Woman film, was selected from a short list of potential actresses including Morena Baccarin. Smulder's deal would integrate her into nine films. Regarding her preparation, Smulders stated, "I hired this amazing black-ops trainer to teach me how to hold a gun, take me to a shooting range, how to hit, how to hold myself, how to walk and basically how to look. I don't do a ton of fighting in the movie, which is why I wasn't offered a trainer, but I wanted to look like I had the ability to. And I really just got down and dirty with the character, but then I finally went on set; when you're about to roll, all the "blubbity blue" you've been working on kind of messes with you. And you become a little bit detached." On relating to the character, Smulders commented, "I can relate to her being a mom and being a business woman and trying to work full time and raising a family and having a career. We’re asked to do a lot of things these days. I feel she is just all about her job and keeping things going."
Here's the 'The Avengers 2012 Trailer'
Credit to
Wikipedia,
imdb.com,
jaymckinnon.com
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