The real “Marvels” could be back in a snap. Joe and Anthony Russo, known for their work on some of Marvel’s biggest blockbusters, are in early discussions to direct the next two Avengers films, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter.
The Russo Brothers’ potential return marks the end of a high-stakes search by Marvel Studios for directors to oversee the fifth and sixth installments of the Avengers franchise. Other candidates considered for the role included Shawn Levy, director of Deadpool & Wolverine, who was reportedly offered the position. However, talks with the Russos are still in the early stages.
This move would be a homecoming for Joe and Anthony Russo, who transitioned from TV comedy series like Arrested Development and Community to Marvel blockbusters a decade ago. Their Marvel directorial debut, Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), was followed by three more highly successful films: Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019). Collectively, their Marvel movies grossed $6.681 billion worldwide, with Endgame becoming the second highest-grossing film of all time at $2.79 billion.
Since their time at Marvel, the Russo Brothers have been busy with their production company, AGBO, producing the Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All at Once and high-budget titles like Amazon’s Citadel and Netflix’s Extraction movies. As directors, they continued with streaming titles such as Cherry (2021) for Apple and The Gray Man (2022) for Netflix, with their upcoming sci-fi adventure The Electric State also set for Netflix.
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The fifth Avengers movie, previously titled Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, was initially set to star Jonathan Majors as the villain Kang. However, Marvel cut ties with Majors following his conviction for assault and harassment in December. Director Destin Daniel Cretton, who was attached to the project, departed a month before Majors’ conviction. As a result, the film is expected to undergo changes in title and focus.
The sixth Avengers film, Secret Wars, has been a long-time interest of the Russos. The storyline involves an all-powerful antagonist, the Beyonder, who pits Marvel’s heroes and villains against each other on a planet called Battleworld.
The 2015 revival of this storyline, which concluded writer Jonathan Hickman’s multiverse saga, has already influenced elements in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022). In Hickman’s Secret Wars, all of Marvel’s multiverses are destroyed, with the remnants surviving on a single planet ruled by Doctor Doom.
Avengers 5 is scheduled for release on May 1, 2026, followed by Secret Wars on May 7, 2027.
The Russo Brothers are represented by CAA.
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