Vitals
- Products: Marvel's The Avengers
- Franchises: The Avengers
- Associated Features: Most Anticipated Movies and TV Shows of 2011, Marvel Movies, Law and Justice, Comic Book Movies of 2010
- Genres: Action Adventure, Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Cast Members: Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Stellan Skarsgard, Tom Hiddleston
- Director: Joss Whedon
- Theatrical Release Date (US): May 4, 2012
- Studio: Paramount Pictures, Marvel Studios
- Publisher: Walt Disney Pictures
Joss Whedon is directing The Avengers. Good, at least we got that out of the way early.
In a statement met with thunderous applause yet surprising absolutely no one, Whedon officially announced this afternoon to a packed Hall H that he would indeed be directing 2012's end all, be all of comic book films, The Avengers. While a vast majority of fans may be thinking to themselves, "Wait, wasn't this already a done deal?" the answer is, "Apparently not," as when asked during Entertainment Weekly's "The Visionaries" panel if he was directing the film, Whedon answered, "It's not an official thing, I think because Marvel couldn't afford a press release, so can we make that an official thing? I'm directing The Avengers."
After the cheers died down, Whedon jokingly added, "It's just a gig."
This being the case, Whedon's involvement with the project has easily been the worst kept secrets in Hollywood, going as far back as April up until weeks before Comic-Con, when Edward Norton's agent mentioned him by name in a statement regarding the actor being dropped as the Hulk. Regardless, now that the geek-approved director has made it official, fans can focus on the big rumors -- like who will walk out on stage as the new Hulk, and what other "big announcements" the studio has in store during the panel on Saturday.
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