As the highly anticipated film "The Avengers" prepares to hit theaters next month, a number of superhero studs in the film including "Iron Man" star Robert Downey Jr are gearing up for the next set of superhero films.
Marvel's Kevin Feige admits the release of "The Avengers" marks the end of "phase one" for the company's plan, and phase two is already in motion with sequels being prepared for Thor ( Chris Hemsworth), Captain America Chris Evans and Iron Man ( Robert Downey Jr) - which is set to being filming in six weeks.
“I loved that in comics, you could read all your individual heroes and you could follow their adventures, then every few years there’d be a crossover event that would bring them all together, in one book," Feige said. "Then they’d go their separate ways again, have their own adventures, and a few years later, they’d get back together again. I want to replicate that in movies."
During the world premiere of "The Avengers," Downey admitted he's ready to jump back into his "Iron Man" suit and focus on the playboy cocky attitude of his character, Tony Stark.
“There’s a little bit of a return to that, I think, just for entertainment’s sake, in the Avengers, which is appropriate," Downey said. “But for Iron Man 3, we are going to back to the exploration of this character, which is what made the franchise work to begin with."
And when Marvel is ready to round up the superheros for another battle to save the world, they'll surely struggle with the simple task of bringing all the big names back together.
“Scheduling has always been an issue and will always be an issue," said Feige. “The famous discussions about Marvel contracts and Marvel’s negotiations, all of that is with the mindset of trying to bring all these people together."
Set to hit theaters on May 3, 2013, Downey will be joined in "Iron Man 3" by Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts and Don Cheadle as Lt. Col. James 'Rhodney' Rhodes.
