The Russo Brothers have been something of a godsend to Marvel Studios. The former comedy directors have already helmed two of Marvel's most well-received films, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War, and now they have been tasked with capping off Phase Three and a decade of MCU films in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4. So clearly the brotherly duo is Marvel's current go-to team for handling the studio's biggest event films. But the question is, will they be sticking around after Avengers 4, or will they ride off into the sunset, having completed two of the biggest films in history? Well, it seems like the future of the Russo Brothers in the MCU is very much open at this point, as Anthony Russo explained:
Our relationship with Marvel has been one of the strongest creative relationships we've had in our careers. We're really proud of the movies that we've been able to make with them and we've had an amazing time doing it. We haven't talked about doing anything beyond these movies simply because we still have a mountain to climb with these two films.
So it sounds like we won't know for some time whether or not the Russo Brothers will return for Phase Four. While Infinity War is mere months away, we are still over a year out from Avengers 4. That film has wrapped principal photography, but that's only half the battle. As Anthony Russo stated on MTV's Happy Sad Confused podcast, they still have this mountain to climb. There is a lot of post-production work to be done on these films, so the Russos will be holed up for some time putting together this spectacular finale. Comic book films in general are huge undertakings, but this two-part Phase Three capper is something else entirely. That is why even Thanos himself, Josh Brolin, thinks that the brothers will be done after this. And after such a massive endeavor, who could blame them?
It would be fair and unsurprising if the Russos felt that they had done all they could in this universe and had laid down a final act that cannot be topped. The nice thing about Marvel is that the studio continues to find exciting directors from diverse backgrounds to come into the MCU and put their unique spin on a film. Ryan Coogler, James Gunn, Taika Waititi or any of the new and future MCU directors could take the baton from the Russos and deliver Avengers 5 or New Avengers or whatever. If the directors leave after Avengers 4, comic book movie fans were lucky to have them for as long as they did.
Perhaps the Russo Brothers will simply need a break to do something else outside of the MCU. They are talented directors and their cinematic visions should not be limited to simply comic book movies. With potential massive changes after Phase Three, if the directors do leave, this is the perfect time to allow a new group to come in and shape Phase Four. Who knows, with the possible influx of characters from Fox, maybe the Russo Brothers have a story they have been itching to tell with the X-Men or the Fantastic Four, and will return to do so.
The Russo Brothers' Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on May 4, and the currently named Avengers 4 arrives a year later, on May 3, 2019. For all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's upcoming films, check out our release guide.
