Marvel's The Avengers
(classified under the name Marvel Avengers Assemble in the UK and
Ireland) is a 2012 American superhero film produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures1, based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. It is
the sixth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The film is scripted and directed by Joss Whedon and features an ensemble cast that includes Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård and Samuel L. Jackson. In The Avengers, Nick Fury, director of the peacekeeping organization S.H.I.E.L.D., recruits Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk and Thor to form a team that
must stop Thor's adoptive brother Loki from subjugating the
Earth.
Development of The Avengers began when
Marvel Studios received a loan 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 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 originally written by Zak Penn. Production began in April 2011 in Albuquerque, New Mexico,
before moving to Cleveland, Ohio, in August
and New York City in September. The film was converted to 3D in post-production.
The Avengers
premiered on April 11, 2012, at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California. The
film received positive reviews from most film critics. It set numerous box
office records, including the biggest opening weekend
in North America, and tied the record for the fastest film to gross
$1 billion worldwide.
Cast
A self-described genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist with a mechanical suit of armor of his own invention. Downey was cast
as part of his four-picture deal with Marvel Studios, which includes Iron Man 2 and The Avengers. Downey said that he
initially pushed Whedon to make Stark the lead: "Well, I said, 'I need to
be in the opening sequence. I don't know what you're thinking, but Tony needs
to drive this thing.' He was like, 'Okay, let's try that.' We tried it and it
didn't work, because this is a different sort of thing, the story and the idea
and the theme is the theme, and everybody is just an arm of the octopus."
About the character's evolution from previous films, Downey said, "In Iron
Man, which was an origin story, he was his own epiphany and redemption of
sorts. Iron Man 2 is all about not being an island, dealing with legacy
issues and making space for others. . . In The Avengers, he's throwing
it down with the others".
A World War II veteran who was enhanced to
the peak of human physicality by an experimental serum. Evans was cast as part
of a deal to star in three Marvel films, in addition to The Avengers.
Evans said that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers: "It's
just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You've got to
imagine, it's enough of a shock to accept the fact that you're in a completely
different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about. . .
He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his
brothers in arms, they're all dead. He's just lonely. I think in the beginning
it's a fish-out-of-water scene, and it's tough. It's a tough pill for him to
swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world."
Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans said,
"I think there's certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between
myself and Tony Stark, they're polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight
and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet
and they have to get along. They explore that, and it's pretty fun".
A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a monster when enraged or
excited. Ruffalo was cast after negotiations between Marvel and Edward Norton broke down. About replacing Norton, Ruffalo
said, "I'm a friend of Ed's, and yeah, that wasn't a great way for all
that to go down. But the way I see it is that Ed has bequeathed this part to
me. I look at it as my generation's Hamlet."
About the character, he said, "He's a guy struggling with two sides of
himself—the dark and the light—and everything he does in his life is filtered
through issues of control. I grew up on the Bill Bixby TV series, which I
thought was a really nuanced and real human way to look at the Hulk. I like
that the part has those qualities".Regarding the Hulk's place on the team,
Ruffalo said, "He's like the teammate none of them are sure they want on
their team. He's a loose cannon. It's like, 'Just throw a grenade in the middle
of the group and let's hope it turns out well!" This is the first
production in which the actor playing Banner also plays the Hulk. Ruffalo told New York magazine,
"I'm really excited. No one's ever played the Hulk exactly; they've always
done CGI. They're going to do the Avatar stop-action, stop-motion capture. So I'll actually play the Hulk. That'll be
fun".The 3D model used to create the Hulk's body
was modeled after Long Island bodybuilder and male stripper
Steve Romm, while the Hulk's face was modeled after Ruffalo. To create the
Hulk's voice, Mark Ruffalo's voice was blended with that of Lou Ferrigno's and othershowever the Hulk's only speaking line
was provided solely by Ruffalo.
- Chris
Hemsworth as Thor:
The god of thunder based on the Norse deity of the same name.
Hemsworth was cast as part of a multiple movie deal. He had previously worked
with Joss Whedon on The Cabin in the Woods.
Hemsworth said that he was able to maintain the strength he built up for Thor by increasing his food intake, consisting of chicken
breasts, fish, steak and eggs every day. When asked exactly how much, Hemsworth
said, "My body weight in protein pretty much!" He remarked that
Thor's motivation "is much more of a personal one, in the sense that it's
his brother that is stirring things up. Whereas everyone else, it's some bad
guy who they've gotta take down. It's a different approach for me, or for Thor.
He's constantly having to battle the greater good and what he should do vs.
it's his little brother there. . . I've been frustrated with my brothers at
times, or family, but I'm the only one who is allowed to be angry at them.
There's a bit of that."
A highly trained spy working for S.H.I.E.L.D. About the character and her relationship with
Hawkeye, Johansson said, "Our characters have a long history. They've
fought together for a long time in a lot of battles in many different
countries. We're the two members of this avenging group who are skilled
warriors — we have no superpowers. Black Widow is definitely one of the team,
though. She's not in the cast simply to be a romantic foil or eye candy. She's
there to fight, so I never felt like I was the only girl. We all have our
various skills and it feels equal". Regarding her training,
Johansson said, "Even though Iron Man 2 was 'one-for-them,' I'd never
done anything like that before. I'd never been physically driven in something,
or a part of something so big. For The Avengers, I've spent so many
months training with our stunt team, and fighting all the other actors, it's
crazy. I do nothing but fight—all the time."
An agent with S.H.I.E.L.D. and a master archer known in
the comics as the "World's Greatest Marksman." Renner said it was a
very physical role and that he trained physically and practiced archery as much
as possible in preparation. About the role, Renner said, "When I saw Iron
Man, I thought that was a really kick-ass approach to superheroes. Then
they told me about this Hawkeye character, and I liked how he wasn't really a
superhero; he's just a guy with a high skill set. I could connect to
that." Regarding Hawkeye's sniper mentality, Renner said, "It's a
lonely game. He's an outcast. His only connection is to Scarlett's character,
Natasha. It's like a left hand/right hand thing. They coexist, and you need
them both, especially when it comes to a physical mission." Renner said
Hawkeye is not insecure about his humanity. "Quite the opposite, he's the
only one who can really take down the Hulk with his [tranquilizer-tipped]
arrows. He knows his limitations. But when it comes down to it, there has to be
a sense of confidence in any superhero."
- Tom Hiddleston as Loki:
Thor's adoptive brother and nemesis, based on the deity
of the same name. About his
character's evolution from the film Thor, Hiddleston said, "I think
the Loki we see in The Avengers is further advanced. You have to ask
yourself the question: how pleasant an experience is it disappearing into a
wormhole that has been created by some kind of super nuclear explosion of his
own making? So I think by the time Loki shows up in The Avengers, he's
seen a few things." About Loki's motivations, Hiddleston said, "At
the beginning of The Avengers, he comes to Earth to subjugate it and his
idea is to rule the human race as their king. And like all the delusional
autocrats of human history, he thinks this is a great idea because if everyone
is busy worshipping him, there will be no wars so he will create some kind of
world peace by ruling them as a tyrant. But he is also kind of deluded in the
fact that he thinks unlimited power will give him self-respect, so I haven't
let go of the fact that he is still motivated by this terrible jealousy and
kind of spiritual desolation"
Box office
Pre-release audience tracking showed that
interest for the film was "incredibly strong", with interest very
high among men and strong among women. The tracking suggested that the film
could gross over $125 million during its three-day opening weekend in
North America, with online ticket pre-sales selling out. Further tracking
suggested that the gross could exceed $150 million. The Avengers
tracked ahead of 2008's The Dark Knight
($158.4 million) and 2012's The Hunger Games
($152.5 million), which held the record for the second and third best
opening weekends behind 2011's Harry Potter and the Deathly
Hallows – Part 2 ($169.2 million). On MovieTickets.com,
North American ticket presales during the week before release exceeded those of
Captain America: The First Avenger, Iron Man, Iron Man 2,
and Thor combined during the same period, by over 150%.
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