Speaking to EW, Whedon briefly touched on expanding The Avengers roster in the inevitable sequel, and while his answers were given in typical Whedon humor,it definitely pointed towards a female hero. As you may have noticed, Black Widow was outnumbered 5 to 1 [ or 7 to 2 if you count the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents]. Widow actress Scarlett Johansson backed up Whedon while Samuel Jackson made hilarious reference to The Pro [a super-powered female prostitute]. Given Whedon's pedigree I'd say it's very likely indeed that we'll see more women on the team and in terms of options, the leading candidates would presumably be The Wasp, Ms. Marvel, or Scarlet Witch, who can be used as long as there's no mention of mutants, Magneto or the X-Men. Perhaps Whedon and Feige will add Mockingbird and have a love triangle with Hawkeye and Widow? Of course, this all means nothing if Whedon doesn't return for a sequel. There's currently no deal in place for him to helm another Marvel film.
There's more at EW, including more from Samuel Jackson on the merits of The Pro.
Art by Mike Mayhew.
The Avengers is an upcoming American superhero film produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. It is the sixth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film is written and directed by Joss Whedon and features an ensemble cast, which includes Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson. In The Avengers, Nick Fury, director of the peacekeeping organization S.H.I.E.L.D., recruits Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America to save the world from destruction.
Development of The Avengers began when Marvel Studios received a grant from Merrill Lynch in April 2005. After the success of the film Iron Man in May 2008, Marvel announced that The Avengers would be released in July 2011. With the signing of Scarlett Johansson in March 2009, the film was pushed back for a 2012 release. Whedon was brought on board in April 2010 and rewrote the screenplay that was originally written by Zak Penn. Production began in April 2011 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, before moving to Cleveland, Ohio in August 2011 and New York City in September 2011. The film was converted to 3D in post-production.
The Avengers was released in the United States on May 4, 2012 in 2D and 3D.
Running Time: 2 hrs 23minutes
Release Date: May 4 2012 (USA)
MPAA Rating: PG 13 for for intense sequences of action and violence, some disturbing images, and language
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston, Cobie Smulders, Jeremy Renner, Clark Gregg, Stellan Skarsgård, Mark Ruffalo, Amanda Righetti, Scarlett Johansson and Lou Ferrigno
The Incredible Hulk (voice) .
Directed by: Joss Whedon
Written by: Zak Penn (initial screenplay), Joss Whedon (revised screenplay)