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, 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. Henry "Hank" Pym and his wife Janet 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 the Pyms, a new teenage superhero named Spider-Man, and the king of an African nation who is called the Black Panther.

Cast

 * 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 defrosted into present day; as seen in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).
 * Robert Downey Jr. as Anthony "Tony" Stark / Iron Man: A billionaire, playboy, philanthropist who donned a superhero identity 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 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.
 * Billy Crudup as the voice of Ultron: An A.I. created by Pym and Van Dyne who obtains digital freedom, and harnesses himself a robotic body 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.

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