Zack Snyder's Avengers

Zack Snyder's Avengers is a 2012 American superhero film based on The Avengers comic books published by Marvel Comics. Distributed by Paramount Pictures, and produced by Paramount, Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, and Cruel and Unusual Films, the film serves as the sixth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the final film in its "Phase One" arc. Directed by Zack Snyder, the film features an ensemble cast including Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Edward Norton, Chris Hemsworth, Oscar Isaac, Rinko Kikuchi, Nat Wolff, Chadwick Boseman, Cobie Smulders, Clark Gregg, Billy Crudup, and Samuel L. Jackson. The story sees the titular team who, following a destructive incident, reassemble and recruit new members to take down a powerful A.I. that plans to bring the extinction of the human race.

An Avengers feature film was the ultimate goal to concluding the MCU's "Phase One." Snyder was hired directly following his work on Watchmen (2009). He began revising the original story outline to include many superheroes not introduced in previous films. Snyder worked back-and-forth with the film and Sucker Punch (2011), gifting much of the crew with creative freedom, supervised by producers Kevin Feige and Snyder's wife Deborah. Filming commenced immediately after Sucker Punch 's release, and brining Isaac and cinematographer Larry Fong to the production. Filming was done primarily in New York, both in-location and in virtual soundstages.

Zack Snyder's Avengers was released in theaters on May 4, 2012. The film was a box-office hit, grossing $1.2 billion on an estimated $230 million budget. However, the film received polarizing reviews with praise for the cast, visuals, score, and crowd-pleasing moments, but criticism for its complex plot and length.

Premise
The first assembly and mission of the Avengers resulted in a less-than-promising start, with the team receiving backlash for their destructive aftermath left on the city. Left to no longer continue hero work for an undetermined amount of time, the heroes are left to navigate their normal leaves, a challenge especially for the freshly unearthed Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, However, when S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists Dr. Hank Pym and his fiancée Dr. Janet Van Dyne create a sentient A.I., named U.L.T.R.O.N., that becomes too powerful and rebels against its human creators, the Avengers secretly reassemble to stop the rogue machine from wiping out all of humanity. With the missions' vast scale, the team enlists Pym, Van Dyne, a new teenage superhero named Spider-Man, and the king of an African nation who is called the Black Panther.

Cast
Additional cameos of reprising roles include: Jon Favreau as Harold "Happy" Hogan, head of security of Stark Industries from Iron Man (2008) and Iron Man 2 (2010); Tim Roth as Emil Blonsky / Abomination, Hulk's nemesis who breaks from containment in the beginning of the film from The Incredible Hulk (2008); Anthony Hopkins and Rene Russo as Odin and Frigga, respectively, the rulers of Asgard and Thor's parents, and Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis, Jane's friend and intern who also befriends Thor, from Thor (2011); Sebastian Stan as Lieutenant James "Bucky" Barnes, Steve's best friend, and Hayley Atwell as Agent Margaret "Peggy" Carter, Steve's former love interest, both from his previous life in World War II from Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).
 * Chris Evans as Steven "Steve" Rogers / Captain America: A super-soldier from World War II who inadvertently became frozen for almost 7 decades, and was found and defrosted by S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division) into present day.
 * Robert Downey Jr. as Anthony "Tony" Stark / Iron Man: A billionaire, playboy, philanthropist who was the former CEO of Stark Industries, and later donned a armor suit following an incident where he was kidnapped by terrorists.
 * Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner / the Hulk: A scientist given a shot at redemption by S.H.I.E.L.D. after having accidentally been overexposed to gamma radiation, and being given the ability to transform into a rage-induced being when highly stressed, angry, etc. He has since been able to control this, causing the monster's skin to become gray rather than green.
 * Chris Hemsworth as Thor Odinson, God of Thunder: The next in line of throne of Asgard, who seeks to retrieve his brother, Loki, and reunite with friends made on Earth, particularly Jane Foster.
 * Oscar Isaac as Dr. Henry "Hank" Pym / Ant-Man and/or Giant-Man: A scientist who won the Nobel Prize for his discovery on shrinking technology, and had developed an enlarging mechanism as well.
 * Rinko Kikuchi as Dr. Hope Van Dyne / Wasp: Pym's fiancée, who feels underappreciated in her contributions. She developed a flying wing backpack that she installed to her modified shrinking suit.
 * Nat Wolff as Peter Parker / Spider-Man: A teenager who had just received spider-based powers, and shortly lost his Uncle Ben that resulted in depression.
 * Chadwick Boseman as King T'Challa / the Black Panther: Leader of the private African nation of Wakanda, which is the only area to contain the powerful metal Vibranium.
 * Cobie Smulders as Agent Maria Hill: Serves Nick Fury at S.H.I.E.L.D. as his second-in-command.
 * Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson: Referred to as Fury's "chore boy" who mainly handles on-the-ground/in-person work.
 * Billy Crudup as the voice of U.L.T.R.O.N. (Ultimate Liberator from Terrorist Rule Old and New): An A.I.-powered robot created by Pym and Van Dyne who obtains digital freedom, and an identical army of drones.
 * Samuel L. Jackson as Nicholas "Nick" Fury: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and founder of the Avengers Initiative.
 * Tom Hiddleston as Loki Laufeyson: Thor's half-Frost Giant stepbrother, who was searching for the Cosmic Cube, that would later power Ultron.
 * Julia Louis-Dreyfus as May Parker: Peter's aunt who, like her nephew, is reeling from the sudden loss of her husband, (Uncle) Ben.
 * Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow: A professional assassin-turned-spy for S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton / Hawkeye: A S.H.I.E.L.D. marksman skilled primarily with a bow and arrow.
 * Natalie Portman as Dr. Jane Porter: A physician and Thor's girlfriend, who waits for him on Earth.
 * Stellan Skarsgård as Erik Selvig: A scientist who Loki mind controls to steal the Cosmic Cube.
 * Don Cheadle as Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine: Tony's close friend who also dons an armor suit.
 * Idris Elba as Heimdall: The naviagator and gatekeeper of Asgard.
 * Paul Bettany as the voice of J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just A Rather Very Intelligent System): Tony's A.I. assistant
 * Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts: Tony's girlfriend and CEO of Stark Industries.
 * Verne Troyer as Brokkr: An Asgardian blacksmith who upgrades Mjolnir into an axe/hammer hybrid.
 * Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Thanos: An alien ruler who Loki serves.

Additional cameos of new characters include: Stan Lee in a traditional cameo as a "World War II Veteran" who appears in a documentary; Benjamin Walker as Dr. Stephen Strange, a man whose hands were permanently injured during the Avengers' first mission; Patrick Wilson as Beta Ray Bill, a friendly rival of Thor.

Production
In May 2008, Kevin Feige confirmed after the release of the first Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film, Iron Man, that the ultimate goal was to create an Avengers film to end the "first stage", later referred to as Phase One. Later that year, Feige approached Iron Man director Jon Favreau to direct the project but he declined.

In 2009, prior to the release of Watchmen, director Zack Snyder was proposed to helm the Avengers film and shortly accepted.

Release
Zack Snyder's Avengers was released theatrically in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D formats by Paramount Pictures on May 4, 2012.