Who Are THE AVENGERS: Cast and Character Breakdown

Last week at the San Diego Comic-Con a huge announcement was made during the Marvel Studios panel. After their presentation of footage from upcoming films like Thor and Captain America, Marvel president Kevin Fiege asked audiences to hold on for a little longer, as they had one more thing to show the audience. The lights went dark, and on the giant screen came a logo for The Avengers. A movie which we have been talking about for years. An ambitious project that looked like it would be a challenge to ever put together. Samuel L. Jackson who plays the character Nick Fury walks on stage and proceeds to introduce The Avengers. The crowd goes insane. Who are The Avengers? Keep reading for a full cast and character breakdown of each member of this elite superhero team.

Iron Man/ Robert Downey Jr

Mr. Tony Stark aka Iron Man is the ego-centric, ultra brilliant guy, who in the end of Iron Man 2 decided to join Nick Fury’s team. Stark became Iron Man after he is kidnapped by terrorists and is forced to design weapons of mass destruction for them. During his captivity he suffers a severe heart injury which prompts him to design a suit of armor that includes a device to keep his heart beating. He uses this armor to survive and to escape being a prisoner to these terrorists. He continues to utilize the armor as he protects people under the name Iron Man. Nick Fury recruits Stark to join his team called The Avengers which is the ultimate superhero team. Robert Downey Jr is the perfect casting for the role of Tony Stark/Iron Man. Downey Jr plays the arrogant playboy with ease, and his ability to kick-ass in the iron suit makes him even more likable for this role. His leadership and brilliance make him the perfect asset for The Avengers team. -Jeff Olson

Hulk/ Mark Ruffalo

Bruce Banner becomes The Incredible Hulk after a science experiment goes astray and he is exposed to a blast from a bomb that he invented. Banner transforms into the Hulk which is a giant green monster that is almost indestructible. He attempts to control this “other side” of him the best he can. He doesn’t want to get angry otherwise the Hulk may arrive. The U.S Military hunts down Hulk as they consider him a threat to national security. Hulk later becomes a member of the Avengers with the rest of the elite superhero squad. Taking over the role from Edward Norton, actor Mark Ruffalo will show us what he’s got as the big green superhero. Ruffalo is a good choice for the character to Bruce Banner as he can play the reserved scientist role, but we will have to wait to see how he takes on the action side of this big character. -Jeff Olson

Hawkeye/ Jeremy Renner

His real name is Clint Barton but as a member of the Avengers he is known as Hawkeye, a bow-and-arrow wielding superhero. He doesn’t have any superhero powers, but Hawkeye is a trained acrobat and aerialist, trained in hand-to-hand combat. Also, a professional archer who carries specialized “trick” arrows that have gas, fire, and explosives built in. A different kind of superehero, Hawkeye is a master with hand held weapons and is a dangerous combatant against his enemies. Playing the role of Hawkeye is Hurt Locker actor Jeremy Renner, who will wield the bow-and-arrow as a meember of The Avengers. We have yet to see the character of Hawkeye on the big screen yet, so it’s hard to say if Renner is the man for the job. He certainly has the look and build to play the role, so hopefully he undergoes the training needed to pull off this badass character. -Jeff Olson

Nick Fury/ Samuel L. Jackson

Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D, is the glue holding the Avengers together. The only thing more difficult than getting a bunch of heroes together is managing them. Fury’s history goes back to WWII, where he led his unit The Howling Commandos. Considering Fury will appear in Captain America: The First Avenger, it seems he will take some variation of the Super Soldier Serum to keep him from aging. Samuel L. Jackson shocked audiences at the end of Iron Man, making a surprise cameo and laying the groundwork for The Avengers film. Jackson is a huge fan-favorite and a talented actor. The Ultimate version of Nick Fury is African-American, and in one comic even said if his life were made into a movie he’d want Sam Jackson to play him. The casting and pivotal role of Nick Fury are spot-on, no actor is better suited to play Director Fury. He embodies both the playful and dangerous nature Nick presents, and will be seen in Marvel films after The Avengers as well. -Jordan Tunney

Agent Coulson/ Clark Gregg

In Iron Man, an agent continually pesters Pepper Potts into getting a meeting with Tony Stark. He often refers to the division he works for, the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division. In Iron Man 2, we see his outfit play a much bigger role. Tony’s father Howard worked as a liaison with S.H.I.E.L.D and in The Incredible Hulk S.H.I.E.L.D is used to track down Bruce Banner’s e-mail conversations. Coulson appears in and out in Iron Man 2, obviously to show his larger role in Thor is occurring at the same time as Iron Man 2. Clark Gregg is playing a character not grounded in the comics but faithful to the S.H.I.E.L.D persona and brings levity along with a professional demeanor. From the footage screened at Comic-Con, Gregg will have a large role in Thor and I’m excited to see what he has in store for us in future Marvel films. - Jordan Tunney

Black Widow/ Scarlett Johansson

A lot of changes were made between the comics and screen in adapting the character Black Widow to film. In the comics, she was a Russian spy who changes aliegences. In Iron Man 2, she is introduced as Natalie Rushman, an assistant to Pepper Potts. Later, we learn she is an undercover spy for S.H.I.E.L.D, keeping an eye on Stark. Opting out of her Russian background was a good idea in my opinion, since the Soviet Union is now defunct and the Russian angle doesn’t make much sense anymore. The beautiful Scarlett Johansson plays Rushman and does a good job in her smaller role. She shows off her fighting and tech skills in Iron Man 2, and will no doubt play a larger role in The Avengers. I like the casting of Johansson, though I was originally hoping the role would go to Emily Blunt. Either way, fans can expect to see her throw down in The Avengers. – Jordan Tunney

Thor/ Chris Hemsworth

Thor is the god of thunder in both Norse mythology and the Marvel Universe. Thor controls the storms, has god like strength, speed, and the ability to heal. He also wields the mighty hammer Mjolnir which can only be lifted by a person whom is worthy. Though he is a formidable warrior in his own right, sometimes he needs his teammates to keep him grounded. Even gods need to be humbled. A relative unknown, Chris Hemsworth will be portraying our god of thunder in The Avengers film. Most fanboys recognize Hemsworth as the father of our beloved Captain Kirk in 2009’s Star Trek reboot. Most of his work had been on an Australian TV show Home and Away, but has landed roles in other American film such as Red Dawn and Cabin in the Woods. His credentials are lacking a bit, but it worked out for Hugh Jackman in the X-Men franchise. I like Hemsworth’s look. He is about 6’3, pushing 230 or 240 pounds, and has a great voice which is what we need for Thor. Our Marvel superhero needs to have a deeper voice and great stature. Really, his big obstacle is to not look ridiculous in the costume and fighting with such an unconventional weapon. From what I’ve seen I believe that he can pull this off. - Roman Chavez

Captain America/ Chris Evans

Captain America was born scrawny little Steve Rogers who was viewed too small and sickly to fight for America in World War II. So, little Steve volunteers for an experimental procedure code named Operation Rebirth. Through this experiment Steve Rogers in transformed into possibly the greatest superhero of all time. Captain America embodies how Americans can be and what heroes strive for. Chris Evans has been bouncing around Hollywood for some time now. Mostly known for his comedic side in films like The Losers, Fantastic Four and Not Another Teen Movie, Evans can pull off the serious and suspenseful role movies like Cellular and Sunshine. Knowing how not to make a superhero franchise (see the Fantastic 4 movies) can help him in such an ambitious project like The Avengers. His ability to steal focus from actors makes him a great person to be the leader of a superhero team. However, it has been his ability to make us laugh that has been the cause of that. It will be interesting to see how he stacks up next to Robert Downey Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson. Can he play the guy that Tony Stark looks up to? - Roman Chavez

Director/ Joss Whedon

Joss Whedon comes from a family of writers. It has been in his blood and he has spent most of his life doing just that. Directing was just the next logical step. Whedon has written for such shows as Roseanne, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly. As a director we have seen his work on Serenity, The Office and Glee. He has been close to this genre for years and has even written some comic books as well. Joss Whedon is a god in the fanboy world. I personally am a big fan. Whedon is a master of writing for big casts and has a way with dialogue. The man has told many great stories and given the opportunity to tell a potential trilogy will be new for him but right up his alley. This project comes with a lot of pressure as his only big screen project that has been released was Serenity. I think that because he has been so close to this genre that he has the vision to pull this project off. Can he deal with the pressure of directing a big budget, high profile film? We will just have to cross our fingers and trust the man that gave us Buffy and Angel. - Roman Chavez