Since it launched in 2008 with Iron Man, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has grown to include a dozen feature films and three television series. Next year, Marvel Studios will enter Phase 4 of its Cinematic Universe with Captain America: Civil War, which will pit Steve Rogers aka Captain America (Chris Evans) against Tony Stark aka Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.). The third Captain America film will include many new and previously established characters like Ant-Man, Black Panther, Black Widow and last but not the least, Spider-Man.
Although Comic-Con International has previously been the venue for unveiling footage from major upcoming comic book superhero movies, Marvel Studios sat that out. However, the studio did attend its parent company, Disney’s, D23 Expo and delivered the first look at Captain America: Civil War, presented by the film’s co-stars Evans and Anthony Mackie who plays Sam Wilson aka Falcon.
The footage began with a chase scene that saw Captain America, Falcon and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) attempting to prevent Crossbones (Frank Grillo) from blowing up a truck. During the fight, Crossbones reveals his face and taunts Cap about Bucky aka The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), saying “You know, he remembered you. Your pal, your buddy, your Bucky.” The footage went on to include an extended version of the Ant-Man post-credits scene, in which Bucky remembers some of his previous life.
Next, General Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt) tells Captain America “The world owes you an unpayable debt/” but some people see him as a vigilante rather than a hero. The tension between Cap and Tony escalates with the two arguing over what comes next, ending with Tony saying, “Sometimes I want to punch you in your perfect teeth.” Cap is shown delivering his own explanation of being a hero: “In this job, you try to save everybody you can. Sometimes that doesn’t mean everybody.”
Additionally, Black Panther appears using his retractable claws and Black Widow faces off against Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner); she ask “We’re still friends, right?” Hawkeye responds: “Depends on how hard you hit me.” Lastly, Scott Land aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) is starstruck by Captain America, saying “Captain America! This is awesome! Thanks for thinking of me.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, Spider-Man (Tom Holland) did not appear in the Civil War footage.
Doctor Strange
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) is set to play the eponymous sorcerer, Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange, who starts out as a surgeon before an accident cripples his hands and leads him to magic and the guidance of the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton). Since the initial casting announcement, there has been plenty of fan art emerging online, guessing at what Cumberbatch might look like in the role, but now Disney has unveiled the real thing to a select audience at the D23 Expo.
Doctor Strange doesn’t start filming until November, but Disney was able to share a sizzle reel of concept art for the movie following a video message from Cumberbatch, who teased that Doctor Strange is about “girls, cars, explosions, and astral projections into multiple universes. The usual fare.” The images shown includes artwork of Cumberbatch wearing a very traditional version of the Doctor Strange outfit, including the red cape and gray hair at his temples, and laid out a rough sequence of plot events from Doctor Strange’s accident, to his search for a healer in foreign lands, all the way to firing energy bolts from his hands. Chiwetel Ejiofor’s (Salt, 12 Years A Slave) villain Baron Mordo was also shown in the concept art, locked in battle with Doctor Strange.
Doctor Strange will be directed by Scott Derrickson (Sinister) from a script that was originally written by Thomas Dean Donelly and Joshua Oppenheimer (Conan the Barbarian) before later being revised by Jon Spaihts (Prometheus). Derrickson himself narrated the sizzle reel, explaining that Doctor Strange will have the same origin story that fans of the comic books will be familiar with. According to Vanity Fair, Marvel president Kevin Feige said that Doctor Strange will be “as weird as anything we’ve done.”
Captain America: Civil War arrives in cinemas May 2016, followed by Doctor Strange on November 2016; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 on May 2017, Spider-Man Reboot on July 2017, Thor: Ragnarok on November 2017; Avengers: Inifinity War Part 1 on May 2018, Black Panther on July 2018, Captain Marvel on November 2018; Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 on May 2019 and Inhumans on July 2019.