How Joss Whedon Could Still Be Involved With Avengers: Infinity Wars

Joss Whedon is Avenger-ed out. After directing the two biggest installments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers and Avengers: Age of Ultron, as well as filming a couple post-credits scenes here and there, he’s ready to retire. However, while Joe and Anthony Russo are set to helm Avengers: Infinity War, there’s still a chance Whedon could be involved in some capacity.

Speaking with Vulture, Whedon wouldn’t rule out the possibility of being involved as a consultant or a screenplay contributor. He said:

According to the Avengers 2 director, Marvel approached him about helming both installments of the Infinity War. Unfortunately, this was at a time when Whedon was completely tapped out — and he still is. Making a Marvel movie requires so much of a filmmaker’s time and energy that it’s no easy task to commit to without considering the consequences. Whedon previously said that agreeing to steer the ship for the third and fourth films would take up the next four years of his life, at which point it would be more than five years since he created anything all his own (that is, not based on already-established characters and events). As he recollected to Vulture, Marvel knew this on some level.

With the Russo brothers at the helm, Avengers: Infinity War enlisted screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely to pen the screenplay. This team speaks to the massive success of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. All four of these guys had the same positions for the game-changing MCU installment that revealed Hydra hiding within the bowels of S.H.I.E.L.D. The film was a massive success, and if anyone can steer the next two Avengers films, it’s them. The Russos are already on board Civil War, so hopefully they won’t get too burned out. As Whedon said, there are a lot of balls to juggle with Infinity War. The Russos are seasoned filmmakers, but they might need all the help they can get.

Again, this doesn’t mean Whedon is completely out of the Marvel game after Age of Ultron. After all, once you’re in the Marvel family, you’re in. Though it’s not confirmed, he previously said he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of directing Captain Marvel. Kevin Feige recently said that film is still in the early stages of development, and the next step is hiring a pair of screenwriters. The latest reports sat that Nicole Perlman and Meg LeFauve, of Guardians of the Galaxy and Inside Out, respectively, are in negotiations for the gig. Once that’s settled, Marvel can focus on finding a filmmaker and a leading lady.