Marvel
Although the full plot of Joss Whedon’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron has been kept quite torturously under wraps, that hasn’t stopped us from learning perhaps a bit more than Marvel and company would like us hear ‐ like that Thor star Idris Elba will be appearing in a small scene in the upcoming film. Elba let the news slip to The Telegraph this weekend, revealing that he shot a scene with Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston), a prospect he doesn’t seem so excited about.
Elba told the outlet, “I’m in Avengers…And I’m doing a scene with Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston, and they’re like, [whispers] ‐ ‘Aren’t you [meant to be] in Ibiza?’” (Also, did you know that Elba moonlights as a DJ in Ibiza during the summer? Because we needed more proof that Elba is the coolest guy around.) Beyond taking time off from spinning on the 1s and 2s, Elba revealed that the superhero game is wearing a bit thin for him, sharing a little insight into how it felt going from Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom to Thor: The Dark World.
“It was really weird…I’d just done eight months in South Africa. I came to England and the day I came back I had to do reshoots on Thor 2…And in the actual scene my hair was different, my…I was like, ‘This is torture, man. I don’t want to do this.’ My agent said: ‘You have to, it’s part of the deal.’” And now he’s back for more, probably because the MCU demands it! Who else needs to appear in the upcoming film? We’ve got some ideas.
1. Iron Man
As the de facto leader of the Avengers, no Avengers film would be complete without Iron Man. Plus, the world loves Robert Downey, Jr. Bring him back, Marvel!
2. Captain America
That patriotic sprit, that adamantium-vibranium alloy shield, those boyish good looks. We need ya, Cap!
3. Thor
Tricked ya! We already know he’s going to be there, thanks to Elba’s slip-up.
4. Black Widow
Until we finally get our Captain Marvel movie, we need Widow around to ensure that Marvel’s superhero ranks have the kind of feminine wiles that can balance out all that testosterone.
5. Quicksilver
But maybe, like, not the same Quicksilver from X-Men: Days of Future Past? Can we arrange that?
6. Scarlet Witch
If Quicksilver is there, his sister needs to come along for the ride.
7. The Hulk
Ruffalo. Ruffalo. Ruuuuffffallllo.
8. Nick Fury
Who else will bring the team back together?
9. Vision
We swear we saw him on a poster earlier this year.
10. Ultron
His name is in the title!
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Wait ‐ all of these characters are appearing in The Avengers: Age of Ultron? And we’ve known that for months now? This is madness! How many other characters can Marvel possibly include in this film? Next you’ll be telling us that Agent Maria Hill and Hawkeye are going to be in this one! Oh.
So why exactly does Age of Ultron need to pile on the characters for the already sure-to-be-blockbuster? Because that’s the price of a cinematic universe of interconnected stories. Pretty soon, we’re going to need some charts and graphs and Venn diagrams to remember exactly who is who and what is going on in the MCU. At this point, the appearance of any and all Marvel character in a film shouldn’t surprise anyone ‐ when stars sign on for the Marvel gig, they also sign on to appear in a whole mess of Marvel films, from starring roles to supporting gigs to the odd cameo. Who is going to star in each individual Marvel film is no longer news, simply because any one of them could pop up in any film at any time. If you’ve already been cast in an MCU film, we’re just going to keep it simple and expect to always see you.
But, until we finally lay our eyes on the finished Age of Ultron, you might want to launch into a large-scale Marvel marathon in order to stay fresh for the latest adventures of, well, just about everyone in the MCU.
The Avengers: Age of Ultron opens on May 1st. It will star everyone.
