2018 is already shaping up to be a banner year for Marvel Studios.
Not only has Black Panther cemented its place in box office history ($748 million worldwide and counting), but the industry giant is now preparing for the back-to-back launch of Avengers: Infinity War and Ant-Man and the Wasp.
And if that wasn’t enough, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is also fast approaching its 10th anniversary. Yes, as of May 2nd, 2018, it will have been 10 whole years since Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. launched the world’s biggest franchise with their Iron Man movie. And the rest, as they say, is history.
But the MCU is nothing without its leading heroes, and in an attempt to honor that enormous roster, a series of new character posters have emerged via Reddit. There are eight in total, which are designed to spotlight the likes of Iron Man, Captain America, Groot, Gamora, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow and the so-hot-right-now Black Panther.
With the exception of Panther, Thor and Iron Man, these stock images are somewhat dated – perhaps that’s part of the plan? – as Black Widow looks as though she’s walked straight out of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Groot is also a goner, given James Gunn recently confirmed that the little sprout running around Guardians 2 is actually his sole surviving son.
Be that as it may, these posters are a nice callback to Nick Fury’s by-now famous speech, about bringing together a group of remarkable people…to see if they could become something more.
On May 4th, Avengers: Infinity War is expected to tear the MCU asunder, as Thanos and his nefarious Black Order plot course for Earth. They’ll be coming up against Marvel’s finest, along with the rebooted Bucky Barnes, who is now close to full health after being placed in a medical coma for the duration of Black Panther.