It's an understatement to say that Avengers: Infinity War will be packed. While Captain America: Civil War featured 12 of the MCU's superheroes and a number of other supporting players, the third Avengers flick will feature upwards of 60 movie characters who will be involved one way or another in the long-awaited conflict with Thanos. Obviously that means there will be a lot of familiar faces, but according to directors Joe and Anthony Russo, they also have a few unexpected faces up their sleeves, some of whom might hail from the small screen.
While speaking with the Toronto Sun, the Russos acknowledged the obstacles in place that make it hard to include TV characters in the movies, they do look at all these characters, but they don't want to give everything away about what they're planning for Avengers: Infinity War. Anthony Russo explained:
We do consider everyone. We don't want to get too specific about what's going to happen with these movies. We want these movies to be a surprise for audiences.
There's been a lot of back and forth about whether Marvel TV characters will ever appear in the MCU's big screen adventures, especially Infinity War. Although the Marvel movies and TV shows do take place in the same universe, they're run separately, and because the movies are developed so far in advance, it's harder to coordinate schedules and not mess up a project's plans. This past May, the Russos implied it was unlikely any TV characters would show up in Avengers: Infinity War because they were focused on "telling the stories of the characters that currently exist on the movie side," but maybe they either changed their minds during the scripting process or simply want to offer a little hope to the TV fans who want to see certain characters, namely the Netflix heroes, appear in Infinity War, even if it's just a cameo.
The interview also addressed Captain Marvel, who will be leading her own movie in 2019. However, earlier this year, the Russos may have accidentally let slip that Carol Danvers will debut a little earlier in Avengers: Infinity War. While the brothers wouldn't confirm or deny whether this is the case, they did approve of the decision to cast Brie Larson. Joe Russo said:
It's an incredible piece of casting. You couldn't ask for better. Not only is she an amazingly talented actor but she's a wonderful human being. We're really looking forward to the opportunity of re-teaming with her -- if we were to get the chance to work with that character.
As the article noted later, the Russos used this same "coyness" when talking about whether or not Spider-Man was involved with Captain America: Civil War, and we know how that turned out. So while her appearance isn't official yet, it's looking more and more likely that Carol Danvers will pop up during Avengers: Infinity War. That said, because Captain Marvel will tell Carol's origin story, she may not necessarily have her powers when she's alongside Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on May 4, 2018.
