Avengers 5 Enlists Another Marvel Director Instead Of The Russo Brothers
No Russos included!
Joe and Anthony Russo, known by fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the Russo brothers, have been directing epic television and films for the better part of two decades. After the success of their triumphant turn in the MCU with Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Marvel brought the brothers on again to direct Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and the penultimate Avengers: Endgame. Many fans had high hopes for the Russo brothers to return to the MCU with another go at a film in either Phase 5 or 6 of the franchise, but it appears that plan may not come to fruition anytime soon. However, another Marvel favorite has stepped into the director’s chair to take over Avengers 5.
According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter, Destin Daniel Cretton has signed on to direct the proposed Avengers 5, which will be released in 2025. Cretton is best known to MCU audiences as the director of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which starred Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Meng’er Zhang, and Tony Leung. Announced by Marvel producer Kevin Feige at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, two Avengers films will be added to the franchise, which will be released back-to-back. Avengers 5 and 6 will round out the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 6 with reported release dates of May 2, 2025, and November 7, 2025, respectively.
With the return of Destin Daniel Cretton to directing an MCU project, it should be noted that he will be the first director other than the Russo brothers to take on an official Avengers film since 2018. Avengers 5 has been retitled to be Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, as reported by IGN. The movie’s cast has yet to be confirmed. Still, actor Jonathan Majors portrays the character of Kang the Conqueror in the Disney+ original series Loki and will be featured in the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, due to be released in February 2023 as part of the MCU’s Phase 5. It would be safe to assume that with the new Avengers film, Kang may feature prominently, or at least flashbacks of the character may appear in the latest installment.
Even though the Russo brothers are not returning as previously rumored for Avengers 5 and Avengers 6, the directing pair have been quite busy nonetheless. The directors are coming off of their hit film The Gray Man, starring Captain America himself, Chris Evans, as well as Ryan Gosling and Ana de Armas. With a noted budget of $200 million, The Gray Man is one of the most expensive movies produced by Netflix. According to JoBlo, a sequel and spin-off starring Gosling’s character are currently in development, with confirmation that the Russo brothers will return for more of The Gray Man. The two have also wrapped production of the television series Citadel, starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Richard Madden, and Stanley Tucci. As for Destin Daniel Cretton, the Short Term 12 director has completed production on a new television series called American Born Chinese, which will see Michelle Yeoh in a starring role.
