The Avengers (2012 film)

The Avengers
North American release poster
Directed by	Joss Whedon
Screenplay by	Joss Whedon
Story by	Zak Penn Joss Whedon
Produced by	Kevin Feige
Starring	Robert Downey, Jr. Chris Evans Mark Ruffalo Chris Hemsworth Scarlett Johansson Jeremy Renner Tom Hiddleston Clark Gregg Cobie Smulders Stellan Skarsgård Samuel L. Jackson
Cinematography	Seamus McGarvey
Edited by	Jeffrey Ford Lisa Lassek
Music by	Alan Silvestri
Production company	Marvel Studios
Distributed by	Walt Disney Pictures
Release dates	April 11, 2012 (2012-04-11) (world premiere) May 4, 2012 (2012-05-04) (United States)
Running time	143 minutes
Country	Template:Film US
Language	English
Budget	$220 million
Box office	$654.8 million

Marvel's The Avengers (classified in the UK and Ireland under the title Marvel Avengers Assemble) is a 2012 American superhero film produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures,¹ based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. It is the sixth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film is written and directed by Joss Whedon and features an ensemble cast that includes Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård and Samuel L. Jackson. In The Avengers, Nick Fury, director of the peacekeeping organization S.H.I.E.L.D., recruits Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk and Thor to form a team that must stop Thor's brother Loki from enslaving the human race.

Development of The Avengers began when Marvel Studios received a loan from Merrill Lynch in April 2005. After the success of the film Iron Man in May 2008, Marvel announced that The Avengers would be released in July 2011. With the signing of Johansson in March 2009, the film was pushed back for a 2012 release. Whedon was brought on board in April 2010 and rewrote the screenplay originally written by Zak Penn. Production began in April 2011 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, before moving to Cleveland, Ohio, in August and New York City in September. The film was converted to 3D in post-production.

The Avengers premiered on April 11, 2012, at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California, and has received mostly positive reviews from film critics. Released internationally April 29, 2012, it earned $441.5 million. in its first week, covering the $220 million production cost and making the film profitable before its wide domestic release. Released domestically May 4, 2012, it set the record for the biggest opening debut in North American cinematic history with a weekend gross of $207.4 million.

Plot

After his fall from Asgard into space, the Asgardian Loki meets the Other, the leader of a warmongering alien race known as the Chitauri. In exchange for retrieving the Tesseract,² a powerful energy source of unknown potential, the Other promises Loki a Chitauri army with which he can subjugate the Earth. Nick Fury, director of the espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D., arrives at a remote research facility during an evacuation. Physicist Dr. Erik Selvig is leading a research team experimenting on the Tesseract, and Agent Maria Hill explains that the object has begun radiating an unusual form of energy. The Tesseract suddenly activates and opens a portal, allowing Loki to reach Earth. Loki takes the Tesseract and uses his staff to enslave Selvig and several agents, including Clint Barton, to aid him in his getaway.

In response to the attack, Fury reactivates the "Avengers Initiative". Agent Natasha Romanoff is sent to India to recruit Dr. Bruce Banner; agent Phil Coulson visits Tony Stark to have him review Selvig's research; and Fury approaches Steve Rogers with an assignment to retrieve the Tesseract. Rogers, Stark, and Romanoff travel to Stuttgart, Germany, to apprehend Loki, who is is causing a distraction while Barton steals iridium needed to stabilize the Tesseract's power. After a battle with Rogers and Stark, Loki surrenders. While being escorted back to S.H.I.E.L.D., Thor, Loki's adoptive brother, arrives and frees Loki hoping to convince him to abandon his plan and return him to Asgard. After a confrontation with Stark and Rogers, Thor agrees to take Loki to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s flying aircraft carrier, the Helicarrier, and imprison him until the Tesseract can be acquired.

The Avengers become divided, both over how to approach Loki and the revelation that S.H.I.E.L.D. plans to harness the Tesseract to develop weapons as a deterrent against hostile extra-terrestrials. As the group argues, Barton, and Loki's other possessed agents, attack the Helicarrier, disabling its engines in flight and causing Banner to transform into the Hulk. Stark and Rogers try to restart the damaged engines, and Thor attempts to stop the Hulk's rampage. Romanoff fights Barton, and knocks him unconscious, breaking Loki's mind control. Loki escapes after killing Coulson, and Thor and the Hulk are each ejected from the ship. Fury uses Coulson's death to motivate the Avengers into working as a team. Stark and Rogers realize that simply defeating them will not be enough for Loki; he needs to overpower them publicly to validate himself as ruler of Earth. Loki uses the Tesseract, in conjunction with a device Selvig built, to open a portal above Stark Tower to the Chitauri fleet in space, launching his invasion.

The Avengers rally in defense of New York City, but quickly realize they will be overwhelmed as wave after wave of Chitauri descend upon Earth. With help from Barton, Rogers, Stark, and Thor evacuate civilians, while Banner transforms into the Hulk again and goes after Loki, eventually beating him into submission. Romanoff makes her way to the portal, where Selvig, freed of Loki's control, reveals that Loki's staff can be used to close the portal. Meanwhile, Fury's superiors attempt to end the invasion by launching a nuclear missile at Manhattan. Stark intercepts the missile and takes it through the portal toward the Chitauri fleet. The missile detonates, destroying the Chitauri lead ship and disabling the Chitauri forces on Earth. Stark's suit runs out of power and he falls back through the portal, but the Hulk saves him from crashing to the ground. Romanoff deactivates the portal to prevent further invasion. In the aftermath, Thor returns Loki and the Tesseract to Asgard. Fury notes that the Avengers will return when they are needed.

In the first of two post-credits scenes, the Other confers with his master³ about the attack on Earth; in a second coda, the Avengers eat in silence at a shawarma restaurant.

Cast

Cast of The Avengers at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International, with Joss Whedon and Kevin Feige.

• Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man:

A self-described genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist with a mechanical suit of armor of his own invention. Downey was cast as part of his four-picture deal with Marvel Studios, which includes Iron Man 2 and The Avengers. Downey stated that he initially pushed Whedon to make Stark the lead revealing, "Well, I said, 'I need to be in the opening sequence. I don't know what you're thinking, but Tony needs to drive this thing.' He was like, 'Okay, let's try that.' We tried it and it didn't work, because this is a different sort of thing, the story and the idea and the theme is the theme, and everybody is just an arm of the octopus." About the character's evolution from previous films, Downey commented, "In Iron Man, which was an origin story, he was his own epiphany and redemption of sorts. Iron Man 2 is all about not being an island, dealing with legacy issues and making space for others. . . In The Avengers, he's throwing it down with the others".

• Chris Evans as Steve Rogers / Captain America:

A World War II veteran who was enhanced to the peak of human physicality by an experimental serum. Evans was cast as part of a deal to star in three Marvel films, in addition to The Avengers. Evans stated that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers, explaining, "It's just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You've got to imagine, it's enough of a shock to accept the fact that you're in a completely different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about. . . He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his brothers in arms, they're all dead. He's just lonely. I think in the beginning it's a fish out of water scene, and it's tough. It's a tough pill for him to swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world." Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans remarked, "I think there's certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between myself and Tony Stark, they're polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet and they have to get along. They explore that, and it's pretty fun".

• Mark Ruffalo as Dr. Bruce Banner / Hulk:

A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a monster when enraged or excited. Ruffalo was cast after negotiations between Marvel and Edward Norton broke down. About replacing Edward Norton, Ruffalo said, "I'm a friend of Ed's, and yeah, that wasn't a great way for all that to go down. But the way I see it is that Ed has bequeathed this part to me. I look at it as my generation's Hamlet." About the character he stated, "He's a guy struggling with two sides of himself—the dark and the light—and everything he does in his life is filtered through issues of control. I grew up on the Bill Bixby TV series, which I thought was a really nuanced and real human way to look at the Hulk. I like that the part has those qualities". Regarding the Hulk's place on the team Ruffalo said, "He's like the teammate none of them are sure they want on their team. He's a loose cannon. It's like, 'Just throw a grenade in the middle of the group and let's hope it turns out well"! Unlike previous incarnations, this is the first time the actor playing Banner also plays the Hulk. Ruffalo told New York magazine, "I'm really excited. No one's ever played the Hulk exactly, they've always done CGI. They're going to do the Avatar stop-action, stop-motion capture. So I'll actually play the Hulk. That'll be fun". About his preparation for the role Ruffalo joked, "I've lost 15 pounds and I've put another five on of just strapping, pure USDA beef. . . They want me mean and lean, but they don't want me big and buff." The Hulk's body was adapted from that of Long Island bodybuilder and male stripper Steve Romm.

• Lou Ferrigno voices the Hulk (uncredited). Ferrigno had previously played the character in the 1977–82 TV series, and voiced him in 2008's The Incredible Hulk.

• Chris Hemsworth as Thor:

The god of thunder based on the Norse deity of the same name. Hemsworth was cast as part of a multiple movie deal. He had previously worked with Joss Whedon on The Cabin in the Woods. Hemsworth stated that he was able to maintain the strength he built up for Thor by increasing his food intake, consisting of a number of chicken breasts, fish, steak and eggs a day. When asked exactly how much, Hemsworth joked, "My body weight in protein pretty much!" He remarked that Thor's motivation "is much more of a personal one, in the sense that it's his brother that is stirring things up. Whereas everyone else, it's some bad guy who they've gotta take down. It's a different approach for me, or for Thor. He's constantly having to battle the greater good and what he should do vs. it's his little brother there. . . I've been frustrated with my brothers at times, or family, but I'm the only one who is allowed to be angry at them. There's a bit of that."

• Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow:

A highly trained spy working for the international peacekeeping organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. About the character and her relationship with Hawkeye, Johansson commented, "Our characters have a long history, they've fought together for a long time in a lot of battles in many different countries. We're the two members of this avenging group who are skilled warriors — we have no superpowers. Black Widow is definitely one of the team though. She's not in the cast simply to be a romantic foil or eye candy. She's there to fight, so I never felt like I was the only girl. We all have our various skills and it feels equal". Regarding her training Johansson stated, "Even though Iron Man 2 was 'one-for-them,' I'd never done anything like that before. I'd never been physically driven in something, or a part of something so big. For The Avengers, I've spent so many months training with our stunt team, and fighting all the other actors, it's crazy. I do nothing but fight—all the time."

• Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton / Hawkeye:

A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and master archer known in the comics as the "World's Greatest Marksman." Renner said it was a very physical role and that he trained physically and practiced archery as much as possible in preparation. About the role, Renner remarked, "When I saw Iron Man, I thought that was a really kick-ass approach to superheroes. Then they told me about this Hawkeye character, and I liked how he wasn't really a superhero; he's just a guy with a high skill set. I could connect to that." Regarding Hawkeye's sniper mentality, Renner stated, "It's a lonely game. He's an outcast. His only connection is to Scarlett's character, Natasha. It's like a left hand/right hand thing. They coexist, and you need them both, especially when it comes to a physical mission." Renner said Hawkeye is not insecure about his humanity explaining, "Quite the opposite, he's the only one who can really take down the Hulk with his [tranquilizer-tipped] arrows. He knows his limitations. But when it comes down to it, there has to be a sense of confidence in any superhero."

• Tom Hiddleston as Loki:

Thor's adoptive brother and nemesis based on the deity of the same name. In regard to his character's evolution from the film Thor, Hiddleston stated, "I think the Loki we see in The Avengers is further advanced. You have to ask yourself the question: how pleasant an experience is it disappearing into a wormhole that has been created by some kind of super nuclear explosion of his own making? So I think by the time Loki shows up in The Avengers he's seen a few things." About Loki's motivations, Hiddleston remarked, "At the beginning of The Avengers, he comes to Earth to subjugate it and his idea is to rule the human race as their king. And like all the delusional autocrats of human history, he thinks this is a great idea because if everyone is busy worshipping him, there will be no wars so he will create some kind of world peace by ruling them as a tyrant. But he is also kind of deluded in the fact that he thinks unlimited power will give him self respect so I haven't let go of the fact that he is still motivated by this terrible jealousy and kind of spiritual desolation".

• Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury:

The director of S.H.I.E.L.D., who was revealed in previous films to be coordinating the "Avengers Initiative". Jackson was brought to the project with a deal containing an option to play the character in up to nine Marvel films. In April 2011, Jackson's script was stolen and leaked on the internet after a digital copy was left in a printer. Jackson stated he does more in The Avengers than in any of the previous films and joked that "You don't have to wait until the end of the movie to see me". About the role Jackson commented, "It's always good to play somebody that is a positive in society as opposed to somebody who is a negative. . . I tried to make him as honest to the story and as honest to what real-life would seem." Jackson compared the character to Ordell in Jackie Brown, calling him "a nice guy to hang out with, you just don't want to cross him".

• Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill:

A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who works closely with Jackson's Nick Fury. Smulders, whom Joss Whedon once considered for his unproduced live-action Wonder Woman film, was selected from a short list of potential actresses including Morena Baccarin. Smulders' deal would integrate her into nine films. Regarding her preparation, Smulders stated, "I hired this amazing black-ops trainer to teach me how to hold a gun, take me to a shooting range, how to hit, how to hold myself, how to walk and basically how to look. I don't do a ton of fighting in the movie, which is why I wasn't offered a trainer, but I wanted to look like I had the ability to." On relating to the character, Smulders commented, "I can relate to her being a mom and being a businesswoman and trying to work full-time and raising a family and having a career. We're asked to do a lot of things these days. I feel she is just all about her job and keeping things going."

Clark Gregg, Stellan Skarsgård, and Gwyneth Paltrow reprise their roles from previous films as Phil Coulson, Erik Selvig, and Pepper Potts, respectively. Paul Bettany returns to voice JARVIS. Frequent Whedon collaborator Alexis Denisof portrays the Other, and Damion Poitier portrays his master in a post-credit scene. Avengers co-creator Stan Lee has a cameo appearance in a news report. Harry Dean Stanton also has a cameo as a security guard.

Production

Development

"It goes back to the very first incarnation of The Avengers, it goes to The Ultimates, it goes to everything about it. It makes no sense, it's ridiculous. There's a thunder god, there's a green "id" giant rage monster, there's Captain America from the 40s, there's Tony Stark who definitely doesn't get along with anybody. Ultimately these people don't belong together and the whole movie is about finding yourself from community. And finding that you not only belong together but you need each other, very much. Obviously this will be expressed through punching but it will be the heart of the film."

Joss Whedon, director of The Avengers, about the film.

Avi Arad, the CEO of Marvel Studios, first announced plans to develop the film in April 2005, after Marvel Enterprises declared independence by pacting with Merrill Lynch to produce a slate of films that would be distributed by Paramount Pictures. Marvel discussed their plans in a brief presentation to Wall Street analysts; the studio's intention was to release individual films for the main characters—to establish their identities and familiarize audiences with them—before merging the characters together in a crossover film. Screenwriter Zak Penn, who wrote The Incredible Hulk (2008), was hired by Marvel Studios to write the film in 2007. Penn confirmed his involvement but said he did not believe work would begin soon. In the wake of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, Marvel negotiated with the Writers Guild of America to ensure that it could create films based on its comic book counterparts, including Captain America, Ant-Man and The Avengers. After the successful release of Iron Man (2008) in May, the company set a July 2011 release date for The Avengers. In September 2008, Marvel Studios reached an agreement with Paramount—an extension of a previous partnership—which gave the company distribution rights for five future Marvel films.

Casting began in October 2008 with the signings of Robert Downey, Jr. and Don Cheadle, who would reprise their Iron Man 2 (2010) roles as Iron Man and War Machine, respectively. Despite previous reports, Cheadle rebuked such statements in an interview with MTV News, saying that he would not appear in The Avengers. At the same time, two major prospects occurred for Marvel; Jon Favreau was brought in as an executive producer for The Avengers, and the company signed a long-term lease with Raleigh Studios to produce three other big-budget movies—Iron Man 2, Thor (2011), and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)—at their Manhattan Beach, California complex. Lou Ferrigno, who voiced Hulk in The Incredible Hulk, stated that he would be involved in the film. In February 2009, Samuel L. Jackson signed a nine-picture deal with Marvel Entertainment to play the role of Nick Fury in Iron Man 2 and other films, acting as a vehicle for characters such as Captain America, Thor, the Avengers, and S.H.I.E.L.D. In September 2009, Edward Norton stated that he was open to returning as the Hulk for The Avengers. The next month, executive producer Jon Favreau stated that he would not direct the film, but would ". . . definitely have input and a say". Favreau also expressed concerns, stating, "It's going to be hard, because I was so involved in creating the world of Iron Man, and Iron Man is very much a tech-based hero, and then with Avengers you're going to be introducing some supernatural aspects because of Thor. . . . [Mixing] the two of those works very well in the comic books, but it's going to take a lot of thoughtfulness to make that all work and not blow the reality that we've created". In March 2009, actress Scarlett Johansson replaced Emily Blunt in portraying Natasha Ruffman in Iron Man 2, a deal that subsequently attached her to The Avengers. An earlier draft of the script, written before Johansson's involvement, included the female superhero Wasp. The following day Marvel announced that the release date for The Avengers had been pushed back to May 4, 2012, almost a full year later. Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston joined the cast of The Avengers in June, returning as Thor and Loki, respectively.

In July 2009, Penn talked about the crossover process, stating, "My job is to kind of shuttle between the different movies and make sure that finally we're mimicking that comic book structure where all of these movies are connected. . . There's just a board that tracks 'Here's where everything that happens in this movie overlaps with that movie'. . . I'm pushing them to do as many animatics as possible to animate the movie, to draw boards so that we're all working off the same visual ideas. But the exigencies of production take first priority". The following month, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Fiege stated he would introduce more characters into The Avengers and that the Hulk would factor in the film.

In January 2010, Kevin Feige was asked if it will be difficult to meld the fantasy of Thor with the high-tech science fiction in Iron Man and The Avengers. "No," he said, "because we're doing the Jack Kirby/Stan Lee/Walt Simonson/J. Michael Straczynski Thor. We're not doing the blow-the-dust-off-of-the-old-Norse-book-in-your-library Thor. And in the Thor of the Marvel Universe, there's a race called the Asgardians. And we're linked through this Tree of Life that we're unaware of. It's real science, but we don't know about it yet. The 'Thor' movie is about teaching people that". In March it was reported that Penn had completed the first draft of the script, and that Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada and Avengers comic-book writer Brian Michael Bendis had received copies. Also in March, Chris Evans accepted an offer to play the role of Captain America in three films including The Avengers. In April 2010, Variety reported that Joss Whedon was close to completing a deal to direct the film, and to rework Penn's script.

Pre-production

Joss Whedon at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International.

Joss Whedon, a fan of the the comics of the same name, was announced as the director of The Avengers in July 2010, a notion that was first hinted by Arad and comic co-creator Stan Lee Arad stated: "My personal opinion is that Joss will do a fantastic job. He loves these characters and is a fantastic writer. . . It's part of his life so you know he is going to protect it. . . I expect someone like him is going to make the script even better". Whedon stated at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International, that what drew him to the movie is that he loves how "these people shouldn't be in the same room let alone on the same team—and that is the definition of family".

The casting process continued into much of 2010, with the additions of Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, and Clark Gregg. Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton, who declined the role of the Hulk due to creative reasons. "We have made the decision to not bring Ed Norton back to portray the title role of Bruce Banner in The Avengers," stated Kevin Feige, Marvel's president of the production team. "Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members. The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Samuel, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts. We are looking to announce a name actor who fulfills these requirements, and is passionate about the iconic role in the coming weeks." In response, Norton's agent Brian Swardstrom decried Feige's statement, calling it "purposefully misleading" and an "inappropriate attempt to paint our client in a negative light".

In August 2010, it was reported that Paramount Pictures and Marvel Studios were planning to start shooting in February. Simultaneously, it was declared that the film would be shot in 3D., although Mark Ruffalo later tweeted that this was not the case. In October 2010, the Grumman Studios in Bethpage, New York and the Steiner Studios in Brooklyn, New York City were sought after for as filming locations. Coinciding with the event, The Walt Disney Company agreed to pay Paramount at least $115 million for the worldwide distribution rights to Iron Man 3 and The Avengers. The deal also allowed Paramount to continue to collect the 8 percent box office fee it would have earned for distributing the film and placement of the company's logo on marketing materials. As a result, the onscreen production credit reads "Marvel Studios in association with Paramount Pictures" though the film is owned, distributed and marketed by Disney. Paramount's Epix retained pay TV rights. Set construction was began in November.

In December 2010, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson and Marvel Studios Co-president Louis D'Esposito announced The Avengers would film primarily in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with principal photography scheduled for April through September 2011. Parts of the film were also scheduled to be shot in Michigan, but a plan to film in Detroit ended after Governor Rick Snyder issued a budget proposal that would eliminate a film tax incentive. Three months later in March, Ohio Governor John Kasich announced before Mayor Frank G. Jackson's State of the City address that The Avengers will film in Cleveland. Concept illustrator and designer of Iron Man's Mark VII armor Phil Saunders stated that "Joss Whedon was looking for something that had the 'cool' factor of the suitcase suit [from Iron Man 2], while still being a fully armored, heavy duty suit that could take on an army in the final battle." To that end, Saunders borrowed ideas that had been proposed in Iron Man 2 as well as some ideas that had been abandoned in Iron Man and merged them together in a modular suit that has big ammo packets on the arms and a backpack. The Science & Entertainment Exchange also provided science consultation for the film.

Casting reached its final stages the following year. In February 2011, Cobie Smulders acquired the role of Maria Hill, after participating in screen tests conducted by Marvel for the role of a key member of S.H.I.E.L.D., who Samuel L. Jackson described as Nick Fury's sidekick. Over the successive months, The Avenger's cast expanded to include Stellan Skarsgård, Paul Bettany, and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Filming

Part of The Avengers film set on East 9th Street in Cleveland, Ohio.

Part of The Avengers film set on Park Avenue in New York City.

Principal photography began on April 25, 2011 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In June, stuntman Jeremy Fitzgerald injured his head while attempting a stunt involving a 30-foot fall from a building after getting hit by an arrow. A Marvel spokesperson later told TMZ.com that despite the injury, Fitzgerald recovered and continued working on set. The following month, secondary filming took place about an hour outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the Butler area. A chase sequence was also shot in Worthington, Pennsylvania at Creekside Mushroom Farms, the world's largest single-site mushroom farm, which provided 150 miles of abandoned limestone tunnels 300 feet below the ground for filming.

Production relocated to Cleveland, Ohio in August 2011, where filming transpired over a period of four weeks. The city's East 9th Street was chosen as a double for New York City's 42nd Street to be used in climactic battle scenes. Army Reserve soldiers assigned to the Columbus, Ohio-based 391st Military Police Battalion provided background action during the battle scenes in Cleveland. Staff Sgt. Michael T. Landis stated the use of real soldiers made the scenes more realistic and helped portray the Army in a more positive light, explaining that, "It's easy for us to make on-the-spot corrections to tactics and uniforms, the director actually took our recommendation on one scene and let us all engage the enemy as opposed to only the gunners in the trucks engaging". Filming also took place in the large vacuum chamber at the NASA Plum Brook Station near Sandusky, Ohio. The station's Space Power Facility was used to portray a S.H.I.E.L.D. research facility. A series of explosions were filmed at the Chevrolet powertrain plant in Parma, Ohio as part of the battle sequence that began in Cleveland. Scenes from the film were also shot on Public Square and the Detroit–Superior Bridge. The southwest quadrant of Public Square was turned into Stuttgart, Germany, for filming.

Principal photography concluded in New York City, where filming occurred over two days. Filming locations in New York City included Park Avenue and Central Park. For scenes taking place in Manhattan, visual effects supervisor Jake Morrison shot aerial footage for over three days to use as background plates, elaborating that his main objective was to "get as much aerial work in as possible for the audience to see the big expanses, the wide establishing shots, while also making sure that the effects work doesn't look too computer generated"; "We're getting much better at making entirely computer-generated environments," Morrison explained, "but there is no substitute for starting with a real image and adding what you need."

Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey stated that he composed the frame with an 1.85:1 aspect ratio to cope with the varying heights of the main characters, explaining that "shooting 1.85:1 is kind of unusual for an epic film like this, but we needed the height in the screen to be able to frame in all the characters like Hulk, Captain America and Black Widow, who is much smaller. We had to give them all precedence and width within the frame. Also, Joss [Whedon] knew the final battle sequence was going to be this extravaganza in Manhattan, so the height and vertical scale of the buildings was going to be really important." The film was McGarvey's first venture shooting with a digital camera; the Arri Alexa. The Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital SLR camera was used for some shots, and high-speed shots were captured on 35 mm film with the Arriflex 435. About his visual approach, McGarvey remarked "Joss and I were keen on having a very visceral and naturalistic quality to the image. We wanted this to feel immersive and did not want a 'comic book look' that might distance an audience with the engagement of the film. We moved the camera a lot on Steadicam, cranes and on dollies to create kinetic images; and we chose angles that were dramatic, like low angles for heroic imagery."

Post-production

In December 2011, Disney announced that the film will be converted to 3D. About the 3D conversion Whedon stated, "Yeah, it's fun!. . . I'm not a big fan of extreme long lens, talky movies - I like to see the space I'm in and relate to it, so 3D kinda fits my aesthetic anyway. And the technology has advanced so far in the past couple years." Whedon also said that "there definitely are movies that shouldn't be in 3D" but "The Avengers isn't obnoxiously 3D. There's no, 'Oh look, we're going to spend 20 minutes going through this tunnel because it's in 3D!' And no one is pointing at the screen the entire time. But it's an action movie. Things tend to hurtle toward the screen anyway".

In January 2012, it was reported that The Avengers would be digitally remastered for IMAX 3D and set to open in IMAX theaters on May 4, 2012, the same day it opens in regular theaters. The IMAX release of The Avengers follows Marvel's release of Iron Man 2 and Thor on IMAX screens. An additional post-credits scene involving the Avengers eating shawarma was shot on April 12, 2012, a day after the world premiere.

Industrial Light & Magic, who previously worked on Ang Lee's Hulk, was responsible for animating the Hulk in The Avengers. Jeff White, the company's visual effects supervisor, stated "We really wanted to utilize everything we've developed the last 10 years and make it a pretty spectacular Hulk. One of the great design decisions was to incorporate Mark Ruffalo into the look of him. So much of Hulk is based on Ruffalo and his performance, not only in motion capture and on set but down to his eyes, his teeth, and his tongue. We collected a huge amount of data and, thankfully, Mark is just the most agreeable person for the series of trials we put him through. We did many different types of image capture and he did a life cast of his head, hands and feet for us. Every pore and every blemish came from Mark, even his fingerprints. It was great not having to make everything up."

Weta Digital took over duties for animating Iron Man from ILM. Guy Williams, Weta's visual effects supervisor stated "We shared assets back and forth with ILM, but our pipelines are unique and it's hard for other assets to plug into it. But in this case, we got their models and we had to redo the texture spaces because the way we texture maps is different."

Method Design in Los Angeles created the closing credits for The Avengers. Steve Viola, creative director at Method Design, stated "This piece was a 2 minute self-contained main on end sequence created entirely in CG. For each of the shots in the sequence we designed, modeled, textured, and lit all of the environments and many of the foreground objects. We received assets from Marvel to include in the piece, then heavily re-modeled and re-surfaced them to create a post-battle macro sequence. We also designed a custom typeface for the Main Title The Avengers as well as 30 credits set in-scene."

Music

Main article: Avengers Assemble (soundtrack)

In November 2011, Marvel announced that Alan Silvestri, who scored Captain America: The First Avenger, would write and compose the score for The Avengers. Silvestri stated, "This is actually a very unique experience [for me]. I've worked on films where there have been a number of stars and certainly worked on films where there have been characters of equal weight in terms of their level of importance and profile in the film, but this one is somewhat extreme in that regard because each of these characters has their own world and it's a very different situation. It's very challenging to look for a way to give everyone the weight and consideration they need, but at the same time the film is really about the coming together of these characters, which implies that there is this entity called the Avengers which really has to be representative of all of them together." Silvestri developed the score with the London Symphony Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios in London, England. Whedon described the score as "old school", saying "the score is very old-fashioned, which is why [Silvestri] was letter perfect for this movie because he can give you the heightened emotion, the [Hans Zimmer] school of 'I'm just feeling a lot right now!' but he can also be extraordinarily cue and character specific, which I love."

In March 2012, American alternative rock band Soundgarden announced through their official Facebook page that they have written a song to be included on the film's soundtrack, entitled "Live to Rise". Additionally, Indian rock band Agnee released a music video for their single "Hello Andheron", which will serve as the theme song for the Indian release of the film. The following day, Marvel revealed the details for the soundtrack, which was released on May 1, 2012, the same day as the score.

Marketing

Chris Evans, Tom Hiddleston, Cobie Smulders and Clark Gregg promoting The Avengers at the 2011 New York Comic Con.

The film was promoted at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International, during which a teaser trailer narrated by Samuel L. Jackson was shown followed by an introduction of the cast. In June 2011, Marvel Studios announced that it would not hold a panel at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con International after studios executives decided it was not prepared to compete with its own past and fan expectations with filming still in production. The following month, a teaser trailer that was meant to be the post-credits scene of Captain America: The First Avenger was briefly leaked online. Entertainment Weekly speculated it came from a preview screening and described the footage as "shaky, fuzzy, flickering and obviously filmed on a cell phone".

In August 2011, Walt Disney Studios, Pixar Animation Studios and Marvel Studios presented a look at Walt Disney Studios' upcoming film slate, which included Marvel's The Avengers, at the D23 Expo in Anaheim, California. The presentation featured footage from the film and appearances by the cast members. Later in August, Disney dismissed Marvel's executive vice president of worldwide marketing, vice president of worldwide marketing and manager of worldwide marketing to bring their functions in-house.

In October 2011, Marvel Studios held a presentation at the New York Comic Con that featured new footage and a panel discussion including producer Kevin Feige and several cast members. The first full-length trailer was also released in October. Comic Book Resources said, "The two-minute teaser handily establishes the movie's premise" and is "heavy on the assembling, but fans are also treated to plenty of action, as well glimpses [sic] of Iron Man's new armor and, best of all, the new take on the Incredible Hulk. Naturally, Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark gets the best lines". However, The Hollywood Reporter called it, "Awesome. Or it would be if we hadn't seen all of this before and expected every single thing that we saw in the trailer". The trailer which debuted exclusively on iTunes Movie Trailers, was downloaded over 10 million times in its first 24 hours, breaking the website's record for the most-viewed trailer. However, this record was later surpassed by the trailer for The Dark Knight Rises which was downloaded more than 12.5 million times in its first 24 hours. A second full-length trailer was released on iTunes in February 2012, reaching a record 13.7 million downloads in 24 hours, besting the previous record set by The Dark Knight Rises. The theatrical trailers of The Avengers appeared with many films, including Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, 21 Jump Street and The Hunger Games.

In January 2012, Marvel Studios held a global Twitter chat. The 30-minute live tweeting event featured writer/director Joss Whedon, cast members Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston and Clark Gregg and a 10-second tease of the 30-second Super Bowl commercial that would air during Super Bowl XLVI in February. According to the Los Angeles Times, Disney paid an estimated $4 million for the 30-second spot. On May 1, 2012, executives from Marvel Studios, along with actors Tom Hiddleston and Clark Gregg, rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange in honor of the theatrical release of The Avengers.

Tie-in comics

In December 2011, Marvel announced that an eight-issue comic-book prelude to the film, written by Christopher Yost and Eric Pearson with art by Luke Ross and Daniel HDR, will be released in March 2012. In February 2012, Marvel announced the release of a second limited series comic book tie-in, Black Widow Strikes written by Fred Van Lente, who wrote Captain America: First Vengeance, the comic-book prequel to Captain America: The First Avenger. The story is set between Iron Man 2 and The Avengers and follows Black Widow as she runs down some loose ends from Iron Man 2. Additionally, the title Avengers Assemble was launched in March 2012, written by Brian Michael Bendis with art by Mark Bagley and features the same Avengers line-up as the film, versus a new incarnation of the Zodiac.

Promotional partners

Paul Gitter, president of consumer products for Marvel Entertainment, commented that the build-up to The Avengers has helped strengthen retail partnerships, "Retailers have been less tolerant with IP films, so we decided that if we started on this coordinated strategy several years ago, retailers would give us shelf space throughout the years and we would have a more sustainable position in the marketplace".

In September 2011, set photos of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) driving a new model Acura were published online. An Acura spokesperson later released a statement confirming the company's involvement with the film, "As you may know, Acura has been in the Marvel Comics Universe films as the official car of their fictional law enforcement agency called S.H.I.E.L.D. That relationship continues for The Avengers. The open-top sports car that was photographed yesterday is a one-off, fictional car that was made just for the movie and will not be produced. That said, as you may also know, our CEO has said publicly that we are studying the development of a new sportscar, but we can't say any more about it at this time." In December 2011, Acura announced that a new NSX styled along the lines of the concept built for The Avengers will be unveiled at the 2012 North American International Auto Show.

In February 2012, it was announced that Marvel has partnered with JADS, a fragrance company, to promote The Avengers with character-based fragrances. The announcement was just ahead of the Toy Industry Association's annual February exhibition, where representatives held a sampling booth of the products. Other promotional partners include bracelet-maker Colantotte, Dr Pepper, Farmers Insurance, Harley-Davidson, Hershey, Land O'Frost lunchmeats, Oracle, Red Baron pizza, Symantec, Visa and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. In total Marvel and its' parent-company Disney secured an estimated $100 million in worldwide marketing support for The Avengers. Notable exclusions include Baskin-Robbins, Burger King and Dunkin' Donuts, who had partnered with Marvel in the past when their films were distributed by Paramount. Disney does not generally promote through fast food outlets.

Release

Fans at the world premiere of The Avengers, outside the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California.

In February 2012, Disney announced that the film's title would be changed in the United Kingdom to avoid confusion with the British TV series of the same name, as well as its 1998 film adaptation, but this led to confusion over the film's actual title. Empire magazine reported that the film would be titled Marvel Avengers Assemble while The Hollywood Reporter said that it would be called simply Avengers Assemble. Marvel's UK website refers to the film as Marvel's Avengers Assemble, although David Cox of The Guardian, in arguing that it was one of the worst film titles ever, considered this to be an error in the production notes, albeit grammatically clearer. According to the British Board of Film Classification and the Irish Film Classification Office the title is Marvel Avengers Assemble. Despite this, producer Kevin Feige said there are only two words in the UK title, one more than in the US title, and stated that "decisions like that aren't made lightly and there are lots of marketing research, lawyers and things that get into the mix on it".

The world premiere for The Avengers was April 11, 2012, at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, California. The film closed the 11th Annual Tribeca Film Festival with a screening on April 28, 2012.

Box office

Pre-release audience tracking showed that interest for the film was "incredibly strong", with interest very high among men and strong among women. The tracking suggested that the film could gross over $100 million during its three day opening weekend in North America, with online ticket pre-sales selling out. Further tracking suggested that the gross could exceed $150 million. The Avengers tracked ahead of 2008's The Dark Knight ($158.4 million) and 2012's The Hunger Games ($152.5 million), which held the record for the second and third best opening weekends behind 2011's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 ($169.2 million). On MovieTickets.com, North American ticket presales during the week before release exceeded those of Captain America: The First Avenger, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, and Thor combined during the same period, by over 150 percent.

It earned $441.5 million in its first week, covering the $220 million production cost and making the film profitable before its wide domestic release. Released domestically May 4, 2012, it set the record for the biggest opening debut in North America with a weekend gross of $207.4 million. As of May 6, 2012, The Avengers has earned $207.4 million in North America and $447.4 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $654.8 million worldwide, marking the highest grossing film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Its worldwide opening of $392.5 million is the third largest of all time.

Outside North America, the film opened on April 25, 2012, in ten countries, earning $17.1 million. It opened in 29 more countries on April 26 and 27, earning $73.1 million in three days. Through April 29, it earned an opening-weekend total of $185.1 million from 39 countries. The Avengers set opening-day records in New Zealand, Malaysia and Iceland, a single-day record in the Philippines, as well as both single- and opening-day records in Singapore and in Thailand. It also earned the second highest-grossing opening day in Australia ($6.2 million), behind Deathly Hallows – Part 2, in Mexico, in the Philippines and in Vietnam. It set opening-weekend records in twelve territories, including Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Central America, Bolivia, Taiwan, the Philippines and Hong Kong. It also earned the second largest five-day opening in Australia ($20.2 million). In the UK, Ireland and Malta, it earned £2.5 million ($4.1 million) on its opening day and £15.8 million ($25.7 million) during the weekend, setting an opening-weekend record for a superhero film.

In North America, on its opening day, the film earned $80.8 million, marking the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time, behind Deathly Hallows – Part 2. The film's Friday gross included an $18.7 million midnight run – a record for a superhero film. Without midnight grosses, the film earned the largest single day of all time ($61.8 million). It also set a Saturday- and Sunday-gross record ($69.6 million and $57.1 million respectively). In total on its opening weekend it earned $207.4 million, setting an all-time opening-weekend record and an IMAX opening-weekend record of $15.3 million (both previously held by Deathly Hallows Part 2). Other records include the biggest per theater average for a wide release ($47,698 per theater) and the fastest film to reach $100 million (two days), $150 million (two days) and $200 million (three days). The opening weekend audience was evenly split among those under and over the age of 25. 60% of the audience were male, 55% were couples, 24% were families and 21% were teenagers.

Records

As of May 6, 2012, the film holds several records at the North American box office.

Box office record	Record details	Previous record
Opening weekend	$207,438,708	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011, $169.2 million)
Summer opening weekend	$207,438,708	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011, $169.2 million)
Opening weekend for a 3D film	$207,438,708	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011, $169.2 million)
Highest 3D gross during an opening weekend	$104,000,000	Alice in Wonderland (2010, $81.5 million)
Highest IMAX gross during an opening weekend	$15,300,000	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011, $15.2 million)
Opening weekend for a superhero film	$207,438,708	The Dark Knight (2008, $158.4 million)

Critical response

The Avengers received mostly positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 93% "Certified Fresh" approval rating with an average rating of 8.1/10, based on an aggregation of 239 reviews and offers the consensus; "With a script that never forgets its heroes' humanity and no shortage of superpowered set pieces, The Avengers lives up to its hype — and raises the bar for Marvel at the movies". CinemaScore reported that audiences gave the film a rare A+ grade. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 based on individual reviews, the film achieved an average of 69 based on 42 reviews, signifying "generally favorable reviews"

Ruffalo's performance was critically lauded, with reviewers suggesting he had surpassed Bana and Norton in the role.

Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter gave a positive review of the film, remarking "It's clamorous, the save-the-world story is one everyone's seen time and again, and the characters have been around for more than half a century in 500 comic book issues. But Whedon and his cohorts have managed to stir all the personalities and ingredients together so that the resulting dish, however familiar, is irresistibly tasty again." A columnist for The Huffington Post, Zaki Hasan was appreciative of the installment's bombastic approach, and affirmed that The Avengers was the best superhero film since Superman (1978). To Rolling Stone journalist Peter Travers, The Avengers epitomized an exceptional blockbuster. "It's also the blockbuster," Travers touted, "I saw in my head when I imagined a movie that brought together the idols of the Marvel world in one shiny, stupendously exciting package. It's Transformers with a brain, a heart and a working sense of humor." Justin Chang of Variety wrote, "Like a superior, state-of-the-art model built from reconstituted parts, Joss Whedon's buoyant, witty and robustly entertaining superhero smash-up is escapism of a sophisticated order, boasting a tonal assurance and rich reserves of humor that offset the potentially lumbering and unavoidably formulaic aspects of this 143-minute team-origin story." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times complimented the frenetic pace of The Avengers, while Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times commented that it "provides its fans with exactly what they desire". Conversely, A. O. Scott of The New York Times exclaimed that "while The Avengers is hardly worth raging about, its failures are significant and dispiriting. The light, amusing bits cannot overcome the grinding, hectic emptiness, the bloated cynicism that is less a shortcoming of this particular film than a feature of the genre."

The performances of several cast members was a frequent topic in the critiques. In particular, Mark Ruffalo's portrayal of Dr. Bruce Banner / the Hulk was well-received by commentators. Joe Neumaier opined that his performance was superior to the rest of the cast; "Ruffalo is the revelation, turning Banner into a wry reservoir of calm ready to become a volcano." Similarly, The New Yorker's Anthony Lane proclaimed Ruffalo's acting to be one of the film's highlights—alongside with Downey. As Longworth summated, "Ruffalo successfully refreshes the Hulk myth, playing Banner as an adorably bashful nerd-genius who, in contrast to the preening hunks on the team, knows better than to draw attention to himself." Travers asserted that the actor resonated a "scruffy warmth and humor" vibe, while Turan felt that he surpassed predecessors Edward Norton and Eric Bana in playing the character. Other actors acquired more polarizing assessments. Referring to Robert Downey, Joe Morgenstein of The Wall Street Journal—despite complimenting Downey's performance—favored his work in Iron Man over his acting in The Avengers. "His Iron Man is certainly a team player, but Mr. Downey comes to the party with two insuperable superpowers: a character of established sophistication—the industrialist/inventor Tony Stark, a sharp-tongued man of the world—and his own quicksilver presence that finds its finest expression in self-irony." With Chris Evans, Neumaier felt that the actor accurately conveyed his character's internal conflicts.

Commentators appreciated the film's character development and dialogue. To Associated Press writer Christy Lemire, the script "sparkles as brightly as the special effects"; "These people may be wearing ridiculous costumes but they're well fleshed-out underneath," she remarked. Scott suggested that certain parts of the film permeated a charm that he felt was similar to the western film Rio Bravo (1959). Although she felt that Whedon creates a universe that demonstrates the backstory of the characters, Karina Longworth of The Village Voice professed that The Avengers doesn't explore it "in a substantiative way".

Sequel

In October 2011, producer Kevin Feige said during the New York Comic Con, "Iron Man 3 will be the first of what we sort of refer to as phase two of this saga that will culminate, God willing, in Avengers 2". In March 2012, Joss Whedon stated that he would want a sequel to be ". . . smaller. More personal. More painful. By being the next thing that should happen to these characters, and not just a rehash of what seemed to work the first time. By having a theme that is completely fresh and organic to itself." At the premiere of The Avengers, Feige said they have an option for Whedon to direct The Avengers 2 when and if the time comes.

Video game

A video game based on the film was planned for concurrent release. The game was to be a first-person shooter/brawler for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows and published by THQ, with THQ Studio Australia developing of the console versions and Blue Tongue Entertainment the PC version. After THQ closed both studios, the game was cancelled. Intellectual property rights for an Avengers video game reverted to Marvel, which said it was exploring potential publishing and licensing opportunities.

Footnotes

^1 As part of the deal transferring the distribution rights of future releases of Marvel Studios films to Walt Disney Pictures, Paramount Pictures's logo appears on marketing materials instead of Disney's.

^2 In an interview with Movieline, producer Kevin Feige stated that the Tesseract of the films is the Cosmic Cube of the comics.

^3 Feige revealed on an Empire magazine podcast that the "master" in the post credits scene is Thanos.

External links

• Official website
• The Avengers at IMDb
• The Avengers at AllMovie
• The Avengers at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Avengers at Box Office Mojo
• The Avengers at The Numbers