Returning directors the Russo Brothers talk about Captain America 3, its start date, and the possibility of Chris Evans' departure...
As well as delivering lots of fast-moving action (not least a thrilling highway sequence featuring Samuel L Jackson's Nick Fury), Captain America: The Winter Soldier also provided one of the most satisfying storylines of any standalone Marvel film we've seen so far. Steve Rogers' all-American idealism came face to face with the brick wall of techno-fascism, and the results for the Marvel universe were far-reaching.
As the movie prepares for its launch on Blu-ray, filmmaking duo the Russo brothers have been talking about the process of directing the film, and their plans for the sequel, which is due out in 2016. Unsurprisingly, there have been quite a few questions floating around about Cap's long-term future. We know he's set to return in Avengers: Age Of Ultron, but with Chris Evans' contract nearing its end, could it be that he's set to hand the Captain America mantle over to someone else?
Marvel are, cannily as always, deliberately fanning the flames of speculation themselves, and began that fanning process in The Winter Soldier. Both Anthony Mackie's Falcon and Sebastian Stan's Bucky are, after all, perfectly logical candidates for the Cap role, as comics fans will already know.
[related article: 13 Reasons Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the Most Important Marvel Movie]
Speaking to Collider, the Russo brothers touched on the topic of these two candidates - albeit jokingly. "When Bucky takes over the mantle at the end of Cap 3..." Joe Russo said, before turning to Anthony Russo and asking, "did I just say that?"
"I meant to say Falcon," he added, laughingly. "Falcon takes over the mantle at the end of Cap 3. It's a process that, you know, you have to tell the best story that you can now, and the contract issue's not necessarily something that we're worried all that much about."
In other words, the Russo brothers aren't saying. What they are clear on, though, is that Captain America 3 is set to begin filming in April next year in Atlanta. There's a title on the way, too, which the directors hope will be revealed before filming begins; Anthony Russo is hoping that Marvel will announce it "in a month or so at the most."
Clearly, we'll be hearing a lot more about the sequel soon.
Captain America 3is due for release on the 6th May 2016.
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