There are a lot of mysteries currently being kept about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and one that has caused a lot of fans to scratch their heads is in regard to the future of the team known as The Avengers. In the last 12 years, the franchise has used the brand to highlight their big crossover/capstone movies, and yet looking ahead at the upcoming slate of films and television shows it’s hard not to notice that there are zero projects with “Avengers” in the title. It’s a situation that will continue to drive speculation up until an official announcement is made about what is next for the group – but what’s particularly exciting about the whole situation is that Marvel has a large number of cool and different avenues that they can go down should they choose.
While The Avengers famously formed on the pages of Marvel Comics in 1963, the reality is that the decades since then have seen a number of different spin-off teams created – each of them having their own special hook, and each of them possessing interesting potential for the big screen. Some of them certainly have better chances of moving into the film world than others, but regardless, here are five Avengers teams that we want to see in the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Young Avengers
Of all of the teams that are highlighted in this feature, one could make the argument that the Young Avengers have the greatest odds of eventually making it to the big screen – and a big part of that is the fact that we have already seen a few moves in the movies that suggest it’s coming. In the comics, created by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung in 2005, the team forms when the main Avengers disassemble and it’s comprised of young heroes who idolize Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
What makes this particular angle believable as a direction for the MCU is the fact that we’ve already been hearing about developments regarding important characters – such as Kate Bishop (Clint Barton’s successor) being introduced in the upcoming Hawkeye series; Cassie Lang (a.k.a. Stature a.k.a. Ant-Man’s daughter) being aged up in Avengers: Endgame; Wiccan and Speed (Scarlet Witch and Vision’s twin boys) popping up in WandaVision; and Vision himself potentially being rebooted after being “killed” in Avengers: Infinity War. There are still a few key characters, including founding members Iron Lad, Hulkling, and Patriot, who haven’t appeared just yet on the big screen, but it would hardly be a surprise to see any of them pop up in the next few years.
Great Lakes Avengers
Going back to the first Iron Man, Marvel Cinematic Universe movies have long done a good job incorporating humor into all of the blockbuster action – but forming the Great Lakes Avengers on the big screen could be a fun opportunity to take that idea even further and create the first title that primarily operates as a comedy. Created by John Byrne in the late 1980s, the team is essentially a parody of superhero teams, and while their inclusion in the film franchise probably wouldn’t add anything to the big picture plans, there would certainly exist a great deal of potential to make audiences laugh.
Beyond their ridiculous history, which including receiving cease-and-desist letters in regards to using the word “Avengers” in their name, the team has wonderful big screen potential if not just because of the opportunity to see key members brought into live-action for the first time. After all, this is a list that includes the practically two-dimensional Flatman, the indestructibly obese Big Bertha, the death-magnet Mister Immortal, and the living portal Doorman. Seeing their antics on the silver screen would be a treat, and offer something very different to fans desiring something fresh.
Dark Avengers
In 2009, Marvel Comics pulled off a rather daring change-up with the introduction of the Dark Avengers. With the main team in the continuity having been disbanded, a new group of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes was put together… but what people didn’t know was that the assembled group of heroes was actually just villains in disguise, with Norman Osborn leading the group while wearing the Iron Patriot armor and using the members as his personal assassination squad. The result was a cool and compelling arc in the comics, and it would be awesome to see it translated to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It certainly wouldn’t be a direct translation, and admittedly the Marvel movies have an unfortunate history of killing off key villains – but there are still a number of living characters who could potentially be enlisted, including Vulture from Spider-Man: Homecoming,Ghost from Ant-Man And The Wasp, Zemo from Captain America: Civil War, and Abomination from The Incredible Hulk. Some of the upcoming movies including Black Widow (which will introduce Taskmaster to the big screen), Black Panther II, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings could further add to that roster, eventually culminating in a Dark Avengers movie that brings the characters together to quietly cause chaos around the world for their own benefit.
Secret Avengers
Following the events of Avengers: Endgame, who even are The Avengers? Key members of the group came back together after everyone disbanded in Captain America: Civil War, but as of the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home the dust has hardly settled, and it’s noteworthy that the big training facility in upstate New York got totally destroyed during the battle with Thanos. Presumably the Sokovia Accords are still in effect, taking public autonomous action off the table – so what if a newly organized team went underground and started to operate covertly?
Inspired by the comics line that began back in 2010, Secret Avengers could wind up being the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s answer to the Mission: Impossible or James Bond movies and feature costumed heroes operating in the shadows and carrying out missions that the world at large knows nothing about. It would be an interesting dynamic for the MCU, where major world-ending events are super public and open to judgment, and it could result in a compelling examination of the heroes and their willingness to do what they do best while receiving zero recognition for it (while also setting up big time secrets that could be exposed further down the line in the name of drama). In the comics the lineup features Captain America, Black Widow, Moon Night, War Machine, Valkyrie, and more, but the reality is that this idea could be executed with any characters.
New Avengers
New phase, new Avengers? As the Marvel Cinematic Universe moves forward, it will be vital for the franchise to look ahead and not backward, and when it comes to Earth’s Mightiest Avengers, the best direction may just be a fresh start. As mentioned before, the team doesn’t really exist as of where things stand after Avengers: Endgame, and it could be a long time before there is another such opportunity to do a total roster refresh and inject the brand with all new blood.
When Brian Michael Bendis and David Finch launched the New Avengers comics in 2005, the group still included Iron Man and Captain America, but most notably also included Luke Cage, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Sentry, Echo, and Spider-Woman (though she turned out to be a Skrull in disguise). The movie version wouldn’t have to directly copy this list, but it would be impressive and exciting if the cinematic take on the team looked totally different than the original group from 2012 – and with upcoming movies and TV shows introducing a plethora of heroes including Shang-Chi, Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel and more, there will be plenty of opportunity for diversity.
These are just some of the many versions of Avengers teams featured in the history of Marvel Comics, and the future is wide open as far as what will eventually be brought to the big screen. But what are you most interested in seeing? Do you want to see these groups that we’ve mentioned, or do you have some other ideas? Hit the comments section, and stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for all of the latest updates about the future of the MCU.
