Let me just state, I'm excited as much as the next guy for The Avengers. The Avengers always caught my eye growing up and I (like many of you no doubt) thought "This will never come to the big screen" so it's nice to see that finally happen.
While I am excited for the upcoming film, I got to thinking: what comes next? Let's break this all down, since Iron Man came to the screen in 2008 everyone has been dissecting and analyzing the movies that Marvel Studios has released for any and all information on the superhero team-up. The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, and of course, Captain America. It's this idea of seeing all of these characters come together that will cause a universal nergasm (unless of course you're a pure Nolan-ite).
I was thinking to myself around the time Iron Man 2 came out, how it'd be great if the current roster of characters was shelved. Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and Hulk; keep them on the back burner. We got their origins, and now we're getting a great team movie, but I felt like to keep a universal look to these movies from here on out, it'd be great if Marvel focused on some other Avengers. Limit the appearances of these characters so that we can see a Chris Hemsworth Thor for 20 years instead of say, 10. Marvel signs these actors for a set number of movies, and even if Cap appears in a cameo form in Iron Man 3, that'd count as a movie. So I hope those not familiar can begin to understand what I mean.
For instance, why not incorporate Red Hulk? Sure that'd break the rule I just made of keeping some characters aside, but give Rulk his own cinematic outing. Black Panther, while I'm personally not a fan, I think he'd be a great choice and a great step forward. Doctor Strange, Luke Cage, Moon Knight. Moon Knight may not be the most mainstream choice but Marvel could easily target the Batman crowd by showcasing a case of a 'Batman-gone-insane' scenario.
Instead, we're getting Iron Man 3, Thor 2, Captain America 2. Marvel apparently has two movies on it's upcoming slate. I can guess that it's Ant-man and Doctor Strange. Both are great choices, but Marvel worries me that they're just relying on the same stock characters. Before Robert Downey Jr. would anybody suspect that Iron Man would be as popular as he is? I want to see people tackle these other characters the same way Iron Man was tackled. With creative and distinctive approach. Make Rulk a household name, give Ant-Man a great charismatic portrayal.
Still, if I see Thor 2 and Iron Man 3 and they're great, then they're great. I'll see it and enjoy myself at the very least; my concern is, again, that soon you'll see nothing but the same, and in my dream universe we'd see the roster from this first Avengers film come back in a second with a whole new batch of Avengers. Including:
Black Panther
Doctor Strange
Ant-Man (Wasp could be intertwined)
Red Hulk
and, of course, Moon Knight!
Bring back the original four alongside the new batch of 4-5 new Avengers, and you'd definitely exceed a lot of expectations. People get excited seeing Iron Man and Cap at each others throats, try putting Henry and Tony in the same room. Hulk and Rulk having a 'friendly' dual.
Despite what I just said, let me reaffirm that I'm sure The Avengers 2 will have some fresh faces, but perhaps Marvel is relying too much on what's worked instead of trying new ideas; giving chances to some other characters would be more interesting to see then another Thor or Iron Man. Again, just my opinion.
Let me leave this article with some casting suggestions for all of those characters I suggested (might as well speculate while we're here)
Black Panther
Idris Elba is increasingly becoming a hot commodity in Hollywood, even shining (although not without some lack of lustre in Ghost Rider: SOV. While some argue he'd make a great Luke Cage, I think he has this aurora to him that makes him a great candidate for Black Panther, even if he had a role in Thor.
Doctor Strange
Jean Dujardin Cannes came onto a lot of peoples radar for his role in The Artist. He commands the screen with an elegance and maturity, I'd trust that this guy has seen stuff we'd only dream of.
Ant-Man
He's in great shape and has shown that he can portray comic book characters, Patrick Wilson is an easy choice for Ant-Man.
Wasp
Zooey Deschanel certainly has her critics, as she can easily be typecast as the ditzy but cute girl; but she'd bring an excellent balance of humour and looks to the role.
Red Hulk
I know William Hurt owned this role in The Incredible Hulk, and I'd love him to play Rulk but to be honest I'm not sure how fresh the relationship is between Hurt and Marvel; to play it safe I'll recast. I think to have a menacing but intellectual actor would be best, which is why Ed Harris would be perfect in my opinion. He's frightening in that deep intellectual way, which would give a good lead in to the Rulk being a fierce and tactile foe.
Moon Knight!
Tom Hardy could easily pull off playing Steven, Marc, and Jake. That, and I'm sure if you told Hardy that'd he'd be playing the Marvel version of Batman, he'd be stoked.