During the early days of production on Marvel Studios' "best outing yet," The Avengers, nearly one hundred reporters and media outlets were invited to the highly-secretive soundstage set in Albuquerque, New Mexico. And until today, an embargo refrained them from revealing anything they saw. But now the folks from MovieFone are the first of many to reveal their set report, in addition to revealing new behind-the-scenes stills!
UPDATE: Collider and Slashfilm have collaborated for a two-part video recap of their 'set visit' report!
When Renner completed his escapade -- battling unidentifiable aliens, then stabbing one in the neck with an arrow -- most seemed pleased with the result. Did it give us any more information about the actual story? No, not really. But that didn't matter. Like the “Avengers” trailers and posters, this scene was a fanboy's wet dream -- 100 percent pure unadulterated geek awesomeness.
During my stay in New Mexico, I had the pleasure of speaking with Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Hemsworth, Clark Gregg, and Joss Whedon. They were all gracious, pleasant and talkative hosts. However, getting them to say anything remotely resembling the storyline was like dealing with a well-oiled politician who lightly tiptoes around the issue then quickly changes the topic. Downey echoed similar sentiments. “It's just a really good story that could've been done a hundred ways wrong -- don't act surprised at how unpredictable it is.”
Eventually, our group was able to see some of that dialogue in action: a scene where Captain America and Tony Stark fight over a character's recent death. As we sat at the other end of the warehouse, listening in on headphones, we frantically wrote everything they said.
Captain America: Was he married?
Tony Stark: No, just a cellist.
Captain America: Sorry, he seemed like a good man.
Tony Stark: He was an idiot
Captain America: He was doing his job.
Tony Stark: For taking Loki alone, he was out of his league.
Captain America: Is this the first time you've lost a soldier?
Tony Stark: We are not soldiers! I am not marching in Fury's fight.
Captain America: Neither am I. He's got the same blood on his hands as Loki. Right now we've got to put that aside and get this done.
During our second day on set, we finally got the “scoop” we had come for. After leaving Renner at the abandoned train depot and returning to Albuquerque Studios, Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige, showed us around the art department. Unfortunately, we were explicitly told that we could not write notes or record anything while we were walking through it.
Afterward, I quickly scribbled down as much as I could remember, and combined it with several tidbits we had picked up along the way. There is a random shack in the middle of Calcutta, where Bruce Banner is holed up; a tree-covered mountaintop, where Thor, Iron Man and Captain America go toe-to-toe; a scene where Thor swings his hammer at Cap's shield; Cap's house in Brooklyn; the Wishbone Lab where Loki is experimented on, possibly by scientist Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard); Iron Man, without his mask, falling from a skyscraper; and, lastly, the top of the Chrysler Building being struck by lightening. Answers! (Well, at least, some answers.) Eventually, most of these designs came to life when the official “Avengers” trailer hit the Internet.
For more of
MovieFone's coverage, with brief interviews with the cast,
make the jump!
Marvel Studios presents in association with Paramount Pictures “Marvel’s The Avengers”--the super hero team up of a lifetime, featuring iconic Marvel super heroes Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow. When an unexpected enemy emerges that threatens global safety and security, Nick Fury, Director of the international peacekeeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., finds himself in need of a team to pull the world back from the brink of disaster. Spanning the globe, a daring recruitment effort begins.
Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson, & directed by Joss Whedon from a screenplay by Joss Whedon, “Marvel’s The Avengers” is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series “The Avengers,” first published in 1963 and a comics institution ever since. Prepare yourself for an exciting event movie, packed with action and spectacular special effects, when “Marvel’s The Avengers” assemble on May 4, 2012. The film is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. In addition to "Marvel's The Avengers," Marvel Studios will release a slate of films based on the Marvel characters including "Iron Man 3" on May 3, 2013!; and “Thor 2” on November 15, 2013.