As Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 dominates the box office, the stars of the space romp have been busy on the usual press tour that surrounds every Marvel release. And along with the questions about Guardians itself, there's been a lot of prying about what Marvel has lined up for the future – specifically, Avengers: Infinity War, and what we can expect from the mammoth MCU cross-over.

Dave Bautista, the former wrestler who plays Drax, decided to whet fans' appetite with a hint that there may be a few unexpected surprises up Marvel's sleeve for the next Avengers outing. Speaking to wrestler Chris Jericho on the Talk Is Jericho podcast, Bautista commented that Marvel are “adding so many characters to [Infinity War],” adding that the film will be a jumping off point for “different phases of Marvel.” He then compared how characters will be introduced to Spider-Man and Black Panther's first appearances in Captain America: Civil War.

It's long been speculated that some already known members of the MCU will be making their debut in Infinity War, but Bautista's words pretty directly suggest that Marvel has a few surprise members of the roster planned for Avengers 3 and 4. As such, here's a rundown of some obvious (and not so obvious) surprise recruits for the Avengers Initiative's fight against Thanos and the forces of evil.

Captain Marvel

Kevin Feige talks Captain Marvel director

It's almost a given that Brie Larson's Carol Danvers will make an appearance in Infinity War. Her casting was announced at San Diego Comic Con last year, in good time to join the filming of Avengers 3, which began in January of this year. Danvers' own solo film, Captain Marvel, isn't due out until 2019, a long time to wait to introduce fans to the intergalactic superwoman when a tentpole crossover coming out in 2018 will already see the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Avengers right in her backyard.

There's a lot of attention on how Marvel are handling Captain Marvel, whose movie will be the first solo female superhero film in the MCU. In recent years Carol Danvers has become a key character within Marvel comics, thanks to a character-defining run by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Dexter Soy that began in 2012. Danvers has since been a staple of comics fandom, especially through her relationship to current Ms. Marvel Kamala Khan, who idolizes her. With a solo picture on the horizon, Infinity War would be the perfect time to give movie audiences a taste of what Captain Marvel is made of before her own adventure.

Nova

Nova Richard Rider Explained

The Nova Corps were introduced in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie, and for some time it was thought that Richard Rider a.k.a Nova was actually Peter Quill's father. Though this has turned out to not be the case, the Nova Corps are still out there acting as Marvel's cosmic police force, and Richard Rider is one of their biggest connections with Earth.

Rider's origin story is one that could make a compelling subplot – as a member of the Nova Corps elite is dying, he chooses Richard, then a regular Earth teenager, to succeed him. Suddenly granted the powers of a Nova Corps Centurion, Rider adopts the moniker of Nova and begins balancing of life of superheroism on Earth and space policing for the corps. That alone could be a bridging point between Earth's Mightiest and their inter-planetary brethren.

Next Page: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='Ms.%20Marvel']

Ms. Marvel

Kamala Khan Ms Marvel Comics

It seems only a matter of time before Marvel Comics poster-child and current Ms. Marvel comes into the MCU. Kamala has become the Spider-Man of a new era in many respects - a plucky, young character who, through circumstances beyond their control, becomes a superhero and tries to maintain her idealistic worldview as she battles against forces of absolute evil. Kamala is the first Muslim character to headline her own book in Marvel's history, and her stories often include some element of her trying to balance life in an actively religious family while being a regular teenager and an Avenger.

In the discussion of characters to help carry the mantle of the MCU forward into phase 4, Kamala would be near top of the list. In the three years since she's debuted she's become a mainstay in several of Marvel's team-up ongoing books, as well as consistently selling in her own solo adventures. To many she represents an idealistic, diverse future for both Marvel and comics as a whole, and though the chances of her being depicted as an Avenger straight off the bat in Infinity War are slim, the chances of her existence being confirmed are definitely not to be counted out.

Namor The Sub-Mariner

There's been some debate or whether the rights to Namor are back in Marvel's hands or not. In 2013, Kevin Feige was quite vague on the subject. Last year, Joe Quesada said he was more or less certain Marvel had them. Either way, Namor would make a great addition to the Avengers Initiative - if only for the fact that he's one of Marvel's oldest characters, having debuted back in 1939. The Prince of the Atlanteans was a Marvel mainstay through the publisher's golden and silver ages, before becoming more peripheral in the last couple of decades.

Bringing Namor in would open the door to Marvel's version of Atlantis, and it would serve as some fan-service for comics readers as Namor was part of the battle against Thanos in 1992's Infinity Gauntlet crossover series. The Atlantean mutant has a history, too, with other well-established parts of Marvel Studios' canon, including the Defenders, which he has been a member of several times and was de-facto funding at one point. Feige has commented on the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 press tour that Marvel TV and films will crossover at some point in the future, Namor easily fits into what they're doing on both, and being a background member of the Infinity War would be a good place to start.

She-Hulk

she hulk 10 underrated marvel characters great movie superheroes

She-Hulk is one of Marvel's unsung heroes. On the face of it she's just a gender-flipped Hulk, but her books have varied from Deadpool-style anarchic satire to She-Hulk leading her own all-female team - oh, and she's also a highly skilled lawyer. She-Hulk, aka Jennifer Walters, is one of Marvel's most resilient cult characters, easily discounted because of her name but once fans delve into work involving her, they're usually converted.

A cousin of Bruce Banner, Walters received an emergency blood transfusion from him that causes her to Hulk-up with green skin and heightened physical attributes. Unlike Bruce, however, Jennifer's state is permanent, but she retains her intellect and personality in her hulked-up form. She had a solo run in the '90s that was basically entirely about making fun of fanboys who only saw her as Hulk's female counterpart, and these days she's been made the leader of A-Force, an all-women superhero group. Like Namor, she was also a member of the Avengers when Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet first came along, meaning her inclusion would be another symbolic nod to those that know their history.

More than that, she's one of Marvel's funniest, most interesting female characters, and given that with Captain Marvel that still only leaves us with a single female-fronted MCU franchise, Walters is one of the more interesting prospects for where to go in phase 4.

-

The next couple of years are going to be fascinating for Marvel Studios. This experiment they've concocted is about to see its biggest logical end with as much fanfare and audience goodwill as it's capable to achieve. Whatever curve-balls they want to throw in for these final couple of chapters, fans can be assured they're going to lead somewhere exciting indeed.

Next: How Guardians of the Galaxy 2 Sets Up Avengers: Infinity War

Key Release Dates