Jon Favreau Will Not Direct The Avengers

MTV News recently spoke to Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau about his involvement in the super sequel and where he fits in the larger scheme of Marvel movies.

In that interview (which we have for you below), Favreau dropped a bomb on the collective heads of fanboys everywhere: he will NOT be directing Marvel’s 2012 superhero team-up event, The Avengers! In addition to that bit of Donald-Downer info, Favreau also threw another jab of bad news: We shouldn’t get our hopes up about seeing a cameo from The Hulk in Iron Man 2.

Here’s what Favreau had to say on the subject of The Avengers:

“They’ll have to [find a different director], because I’m not going to be available,” he explained. “It’s something I’m being the executive producer on, so I’ll definitely have input and a say.”

Now before you go all ga-ga with worried speculation over WHY Favreau isn’t onboard for The Avengers (as was previously rumored), his reasoning is pretty sound. See for yourself:

“That’s why it’s good that you have the guys from Marvel like Kevin Feige, who knows the books well and has been involved with the making of all the movies, and he’ll be very involved with ‘Thor’ and ‘Cap,’” said Favreau. “You need somebody who has the perspective of all the different franchises to bring them together. I have the myopic vision of just knowing and loving Iron Man.”

Those are the two quotes I know you want to see, but for more of what Favreau had to on the process of making Marvel movies leading up to Avengers – including Captain America and Thor – you can read the entire transcript of Josh Horowitz and Rick Marshall’s post over at MTV Splash Page, or just check out the video below:

(Sorry to our International readers, MTV videos are U.S. only)

So first let’s discuss the obvious points: Favreau not directing Avengers is a bummer, and hearing that Hulk won’t be in IM2 is a letdown – especially after the back and forth volley of comments recently made by Incredible Hulk star Edward Norton.

However, there are several things to consider:

1. Favreau may be resolved in his decision not to direct The Avengers RIGHT NOW, but once Iron Man 2 comes out (and if it does gangbusters business at the box office as expected) then Marvel might be motivated to throw quite a few zeroes behind a director’s fee to ensure that The Avengers turns out just as well. It would be hard for anybody to say no to the right price.
2. This no Hulk “confirmation” could be a red herring to throw eager Internet hounds (read: us) off the scent. In the interview he does make a point of referring to the surprise cameos as a “cat and mouse game.” So is Hulk in IM2 still possible? Or have I slipped into the warm embrace of wishful thinking?

One interesting question this raises: SHOULD Avengers be helmed by somebody who has worked on one of the individual character films? Or should a new person be tapped to do the super teamup? And as a crazy third option, should the directors of the individual films – Favreau, Joe Johnston (Cap) and Kenneth Branagh (Thor) – perhaps collaborate on The Avengers film?

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Iron Man 2 will be in theaters on May 7, 2010.

The Avengers is slated for a May 4, 2012 release.

Source: MTV Splash Page