It's a great time to be a Marvel fan. Because nearly a decade of blockbusters will soon come to a head, as we dive deeper into Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Avengers: Infinity War and the mysteriously untitled fourth Avengers film will be massive ensemble projects featuring all of the shared universe's biggest faces. Both films are being helmed by Winter Soldier and Civil War directors The Russo Brothers. But now it looks like the Russo Brothers may not continue to direct more Avengers films, at least according to actor Josh Brolin. He recently spoke to the scope of the next two Avengers films (of which he'll be playing the villainous Thanos), saying:
Also, I think that they're in a position very openly and raw-ly where they're like, 'We would never do this again. This is a one-time deal. To put this many successful actors together is such a pain in the ass, but it's been worth it. We're doing two movies. One back to back, and this is it for us. Then we'll go off in another direction,' but this is a very, very, very ambitious project that I think is going to pay off in a big way.
Sounds like the mere size of the two Avengers film is exhausting The Russo Brothers, which makes a great deal of sense. Filming the two projects back to back and balancing all of the actors' schedules sounds like a logistical nightmare, in addition to the challenges that comes with crafting such a complicated story.
Josh Brolin's comments to Collider may be a bit disappointing for Marvel fans, as The Russo Brothers have become one of the major figureheads in the MCU. Their work on the last two Captain America movies has been critically acclaimed, and Civil War in particular impressed even casual audiences who got to see Marvel's heroes duking it out.
While it appears that The Russo Brothers are going to step away from the Avengers films, one has to wonder if they'll still be directing installments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Chris Evans' contract as Captain America is over after Avengers 4, so it's unclear if the franchise will continue, or if Evans would be willing to return for the occasional sequel. It would be particularly interesting to see the Russos pivot over to another property in the MCU, but that might be asking too much. After all, they've been living and breathing Captain America for years.
Answers regarding the future of the MCU will hopefully come when Avengers: Infinity War arrives in theaters May 4th, 2018, complete with Josh Brolin's Thanos. But there are quite a few movies hitting theaters before then, starting with Thor: Ragnarok on November 2nd. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
