Marvel

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has only been in theaters for less than a week, which — in the internet’s infinitely fickle estimation — means it’s time to start focusing on the next chapter in Marvel’s intergalactic superhero saga. It’ll probably be another three or four years before we see our favorite bunch of a-holes back on the big screen, but director James Gunn is already fielding questions about his plans for Vol. 3.

Just yesterday, Marvel seemed to hint at a need for Defenders against a resurrected threat, and now we know why. The war for New York is officially on, as Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist unite in the first full Defenders trailer!

Reports of Luke Cage Season 2 entering production seemed unusually sudden, especially so soon after The Defenders wrapped. Now, the man himself promises that Luke Cage will return to Harlem in a few months’ time, potentially pointing toward a 2018 premiere as well.

With Peyton Reed serving as a fine replacement for Edgar Wright on Ant-Man, fans are curious to see what the Marvel director can do with next year’s Ant-Man and the Wasp. Despite the smaller (get it?) stakes of the first film, it’s worth noting that the sequel will be the first Marvel move to have a female co-star named in the title. That’s both exciting and disappointing for fans, especially those who wonder why Scarlett Johansson still hasn’t been given her own le Carré-esque superhero spy story. Will Ant-Man and the Wasp live up to its promise, or will it be another supporting role for a female superhero?

Never lacking in ambition (at least when it comes to the expanding frontiers of branding and marketing), Marvel boldly announced back in 2015 that the third film in the Avengers series would be unlike those that came before it. At the time of the project’s initial reveal, Marvel head honcho Kevin Feige clarified his plans to split Avengers: Infinity War into two parts that would be released independent of one another. This was cause for great excitement, as moviegoers love nothing more than to shell out for two separate tickets just for the privilege of waiting up to a year to see the conclusion of a self-contained story. Incredibly, however, Feige backpedaled on that can’t-fail proposition shortly thereafter, amending their plans to separate Avengers 3 1 and Avengers 3 2 into the simpler Avengers 3 and Avengers 4.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is just two short weeks away, which means Marvel is dropping a ton of teasy new material to get you pumped for the James Gunn-directed sequel. If you haven’t stopped listening to a self-made playlist of the “Awesome Mix Vol. 2” tracklist, unveiled this morning, hit pause and check out these three brand new clips.

While the post-credits scene was once a surprise specially afforded to those superfans with the dedication to sit through the final frames of a film, it’s now become par for the course, a de facto advertisement for whatever a franchise might have up its sleeve next. Marvel Studios has turned this into standard operating procedure, to the point where viewers expect nothing less than another tasty morsel of footage, the cinematic equivalent of the delicious fries waiting for you at the bottom of your McDonald’s bag. How to continue taking audiences off-guard, then? Marvel could do no post-credit scene at all, that’d certainly throw people for a loop. Or... they could do five.

With Star Wars: The Last Jedi dominating today’s conversations on social media, you might’ve forgotten that there are actually other movies being released in 2017. There are many! In fact, some of them are even being released by the same studio! One such film  —  the little-known Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2  —  braved the onslaught of Star Wars talk to release a brand new clip last night, setting the stage for future films in the franchise (and turning one late night sidekick into a movie star in the process). While the attached video shows the full segment, I’ve queued it up the relevant part.

No bubble can last forever — it must eventually pop, as is the nature of bubbles. Marvel has built a vast media empire on the strength of such stars as Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, and Chris Hemsworth, but no actor would be content with playing and re-playing the same role forever. All good (and obscenely lucrative) things must come to an end, and Evans has begun the long and painful process of consciously uncoupling from Captain America’s star-spangled shield and cowl. But a new quote from the actor suggests that he may not be the first big name to make a departure from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

From horror to comedy to action, here are the must-see films hitting theaters this spring.

There are a lot of fascinating, interesting and just plain cool things involved when you’re visiting the set of Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2. For one, getting to hold Baby Groot. For another, getting to walk through the massive practical sets built for the film. And for another, getting to shoot the breeze with Kurt Russell.

The latest Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 trailer saved the biggest reveal for last when Chris Pratt’s Peter Quill finally met his father, Kurt Russell’s Ego. But that was just a taste of Russell’s character.