The Avengers EDIT:- First Movie in history to make $200 Million in opening weekend

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While Marvel Studios still has yet to announce their final choice for Captain America, they have revealed their choice to play the film’s villain. HeatVision reports that Hugo Weaving (The Matrix, Lord of the Rings) is in final talks to play the villainous Red Skull in The First Avenger: Captain America.

In the comic books, Red Skull is Johann Shmidt, appointed by Adolf Hitler as the “head of Nazi terrorist activities with an additional large role in external espionage and sabotage.”

According to Marvel.com:

“Hitler gave Schmidt an unique uniform with a grotesque red skull mask, and he emerged as the Red Skull. His role was the embodiment of Nazi intimidation, while Hitler could remain the popular leader of Germany. … He was spectacularly successful, wreaking havoc throughout Europe in the early stages of World War II. The propaganda effect was so great that the United States government decided to counter it by creating their own equivalent using the recipient of the lost Project Rebirth, Steve Rogers, Captain America. The two counterparts soon clashed in what would be a series of engagements throughout the war, ending with a final battle that left the Skull buried under the rubble of a bombed building. Because he was immediately exposed to an experimental gas there, he remained in suspended animation for decades. Johann was eventually rescued in modern times by the terrorist organization, HYDRA. The Skull quickly subverted a cell to his own ambitions of world conquest and the death of Captain America.

The Red Skull was a genius at military, political, and subversive strategy. His brilliance was comparable to that of Napoleon. The Red Skull was a fine hand-to-hand combatant, although he was never a match for Captain America. The Red Skull was also a skilled marksman with various forms of handguns.

The Red Skull’s most infamous weapon was his so-called “dust of death.” The chemical composition of this powder is unknown, but it kills a victim within seconds of making contact with the victim’s skin, causing the skin on the victim’s head to tighten, shrivel, and take on a red discoloration, while causing all the hair on the victim’s head to fall out. As a result, the victim’s corpse appears to have a “red skull” for a head. While committing murders with this weapon, the Skull often hummed, whistled, or played a tape recording of Chopin’s funeral march, which was also the Skull’s trademark music when he committed murders in the early 1940’s. The Skull could fire his “dust of death” from a special handgun.“

Weaving’s reportedly just about to sign the contract, while negotiations are at a critical stage.

His involvement definitely gives fans hope that the folks at Marvel will make the right choice when it comes to casting America. Weaving is a perfect fit for the Red Skull, boasting both the physical wiles and mental agility required to play such a conniving, malicious villain.

Expect news of America’s casting soon also.

[The_Return]

Perfect, perfect casting. Very happy about this one - can't wait to see who they get for Cap. Nobody on their shortlist really seems perfect for the part, but there are some interesting possibilities for sure.

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One of the biggest questions in regards to Marvel's upcoming slate of Avengers-related movies — next to who will play Captain America — is whether Edward Norton will appear again as the Hulk in either a sequel, a cameo in other Marvel movies, or The Avengers movie opening in 2012.

This weekend at the SXSW Film Festival, Norton spoke to every media source on the topic, telling Cinematical that The Incredible Hulk 2 probably wasn't likely to happen.

I don't think so. I think it has got more to do with what Marvel is doing. I get the sense they have this grand vision of unspooling a lot of their characters and then starting to put them together. I think they can only do so many at a time. Obviously, they are doing Iron Man 2 and then getting some of the new ones out.

When asked about Hulk 2 by MTV, Norton sounded slightly more positive about a sequel.

We'll see what they [Marvel] want to do. I figure it's a ways down the road if it's going to happen.

Norton also said he doubted a cameo from him would "uplift" Captain America or Thor. As for an appearance in The Avengers, Norton said he was open to a return last year, and in another recent interview with MTV, mentioned that he'd like Incredible Hulk director Louis Leterrier to direct the movie as long as he is granted more freedom.

I loved Louis Leterrier. I thought he was just the greatest guy. I wish they'd given him more free reign than they did. The thing that was so cool about seeing The Dark Night was seeing that those guys really let Chris Nolan go there. They let him go long and dark and deep and we had been trying that and I think they weren't as comfortable with it.

Leterrier has mentioned on several occasions that he would be interested in the Avengers gig if it was offered to him.

[Doc Faustus]

I like Leterrier and thought Incredible Hulk was great.

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It's official: Chris Evans is Captain America.

Reports surfaced on Friday that the actor -- best known to fanboys as the Human Torch from the Fantastic Four movies -- had been offered the job by Marvel. And now the Heat Vision blog has confirmed that the actor has accepted the role of Steve Rogers, the 90-pound weakling who through a government experiment is turned into the pinnacle of human perfection -- the star-spangled Avenger known as Captain America.

"Sources tell us the actor has not only accepted Marvel's offer," says the site, "but that the dealmaking moved so fast it's now all about dotting the i's and crossing the t's."

The news follows what turned out to be a long and laborious casting search for the role, a pivotal one in the Marvel universe. Cap is not only one of the marquee heroes of Marvel, but he's also typically portrayed as the leader of the Avengers. The casting for his live-action incarnation was no doubt complicated by various factors, namely that the actor who plays him will have to go from a zero to hero in his origin tale and then also be able to convey the gravitas of a leader of men on the battlefield -- and of superheroes in the eventual Avengers movie. And he'll have to have the acting chops to stand alongside the likes of Robert Downey, Jr. on-screen.

Marvel thinks Evans can pull all this off... and more. The actor beat out many familiar and not-so-familiar names to win the role, including John Krasinski (The Office), Sebastian Stan (Kings), Channing Tatum (G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra), Ryan Phillippe (Crash), Mike Vogel (Cloverfield), Wilson Bethel (Generation Kill), Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl), Garrett Hedlund (Tron: Legacy), Scott Porter (Friday Night Lights), Michael Cassidy (Privileged), Patrick Flueger (Brothers) and Jensen Ackles (Supernatural).

[fuglystick]

It's strange to see Evans cast as a different character in another Marvel property, but the FF movies were pretty lame anyway. My only reservation is that Evans frequently gets cast as the wisecracker, which is completely out of character for CA, but he's a competent enough actor he should be able to pull off Steve Rogers.

My first choice personally would have been Tatum.

[The_Return]

Originally Posted by fuglystick

My first choice personally would have been Tatum.

Really?

He vaguely looks the part, but he's easily one of the worst big-name actors working today. I'd prefer Will Smith as Cap over that douche.

Anyway, I'm pretty content with Chris Evans. Wouldn't have thought of him myself, but I think he can see him pulling it off. Was pretty intrigued to see what Krasinski would have done with the role so he was my top pick, but realistically they probably made the better choice.

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A couple weeks ago, Sebastian Stan was on the rumored list of actors in whom Marvel was interested for the role of Steve Rogers, aka Captain America. That role went to Chris Evans, but Stan must have made some impression on Marvel. (Or he’s got a great agent.)

The actor has been cast as Bucky, who is essentially this story’s version of Robin. Stan is best known for Gossip Girl and he just completed the Darren Aronofsky-directed Black Swan and the Todd Lincoln-directed The Apparition. He also was just seen playing the nemesis in Hot Tub Time Machine.

Deadline reports that Stan is about to sign to play the character, described as “the sidekick who fights side by side with the shield-throwing superhero.”

As with young sidekick characters, who are so easy to kill off, more than one Bucky has graced comic pages over the years. The original, James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, was an orphan from Indiana whose father was killed in training just prior to WWII. He became the camp mascot, and befriended Steve Rogers. He eventually caught Rogers changing into his Captain America uniform and was trained as Cap’s partner.

This version of the character will obviously be different, and significantly older. Devin at CHUD posted a recap of one storyline not long ago that might point to what we’ll see Stan play in the film:

There’s a version of Bucky in the 90s miniseries The Adventures of Captain America, Sentinel of Liberty that feels like it would fit perfectly in this film: a brash street tough who befriends the completely square Steve Rogers, this Bucky could help Steve go AWOL.

THR confirms the casting, and says that Marvel will only say that, yes, Stan is playing the character. There’s no word on whether we’ll see Bucky’s “death” and rebirth in the final film, but since Stan has apparently signed a multi-film, Marvel-standard contract, don’t count on him staying dead even if he does meet a lethal fate.

Marvel is also close to setting the female lead role of Peggy, and recently tested Keira Knightley, Alice Eve and Emily Blunt for that role.

[QuisCustodiet]

Ive only seen this Stan guy in The Covenant which was pretty awful. He looks like he could pull off some kind of Bucky interpretation though so I guess well see.

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Over decades of Marvel Comics history, Captain America has been the leader of Earth’s mightiest heroes, The Avengers – but on the big screen, “The First Avenger: Captain America” leading man, Chris Evans, says he’s not sure if Cap will run the squad.

“I don’t know if they’re going to make him the boss,” Chris told MTV News at WonderCon over the weekend.

He added that the presence in the 2012-slated “Avengers” film of Robert Downey Jr., who plays Iron Man/Tony Stark, would make even Captain America intimidated.

“I don’t think anybody tells Downey what to do, and that’s what makes [him] Downey,” Chris said.

With “Iron Man 2” due this summer and further set-up films “Thor” and “Captain America” on their way in 2011, several of the pieces of hero team-up film “The Avengers” are beginning to come together – including a possible director.

The Los Angeles Times’ Hero Complex blog reported that Marvel Studios “insiders” confirmed that Joss Whedon is on a “short-list” for the director’s chair of the summer 2012 tent-pole, after online reports broke last week.

However, a Marvel source told Access Hollywood that the “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” and “Dollhouse” creator is on a short-list for “Runaways” – a youth-oriented, lesser-known Marvel property that’s also in feature film development, and happens to be a series for which Whedon himself wrote for a time.

The source did not comment on “The Avengers” reports.

When reached by Access, Marvel reps would not comment on the writer-director’s possible connection to either film.