Samuel Sterns, played by Tim Blake Nelson, of The Incredible Hulk (2008 ) was introduced to set him up as a villain in a future Hulk film, where he would become the Leader. Nelson hopes Marvel will ask him to reprise the role.[19] Director Louis Leterrier[citation needed] and cast-member Tim Roth[20] are contracted to return for any possible sequel. Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige said The Incredible Hulk met Marvel's expectations and that Hulk will return, but after The Avengers.[21]
Edgar Wright plans to direct a live-action Ant-Man film.[22] The script has been written by Wright and Joe Cornish, who plan to include Henry Pym and Scott Lang as major characters, with Pym as Ant-Man in the 1960s in Tales to Astonish style, and a flashforward to Lang as Ant-Man's successor in the 1980s/1990s.[23]
In 2009, Marvel attempted to hire a team of writers to help come up with creative ways to launch its lesser-known properties, such as Black Panther, Cable, Iron Fist, Nighthawk, and Vision.[24]
In April 2010, Marvel Studios began meeting with filmmakers to discuss small-scale, $20-40 million movies based on lesser-known characters. Properties including Dr. Strange, Ka-Zar, Luke Cage, Dazzler, and Power Pack are among those being considered for development.[25]
In May 2010, Samuel L. Jackson said that a S.H.I.E.L.D. movie is likely to be released after The Avengers.[26]
In July 2010, at the San Diego Comic-Con International, company head Kevin Feige revealed that another Punisher reboot is in the works. Feige said that the rights to the character have reverted back to Marvel Studios, and they want to take their own shot at it. He also said that he's aiming for a "Frank Castle" movie rather than a Punisher film.[27]
In September 2010, during a press conference for the Iron Man 2 Blu-ray and DVD release, Kevin Feige confirmed that discussions about the possibility of a Black Widow solo film have taken place. "We've already started discussions with Scarlett [Johansson] about the idea of a solo movie and have begun putting together concepts," said Feige. "But The Avengers comes first."[28]
In January 2011, Marvel Studios hired documentary filmmaker Mark Bailey to write a script for a Black Panther film with Marvel's Kevin Feige producing.[29] Also in January, Iron Man 2 actor Don Cheadle, confirmed that a War Machine spin-off film was in development.[30] A trade report in
March 2011 said Marvel Entertainment is developing an Inhumans film and described it as "in the vein of 'X-Men' about aliens who were put on Earth as a sleeper cell to eventually call back their race to take over the planet."[31]
Feige said in April 2011 that Marvel Studios planned to do sequels for its Thor and Captain America movies, and said he hoped that Black Widow, Hawkeye and S.H.I.E.L.D. films could follow, adding, "[W]e've got a lot of other characters we're prepping and getting ready for film debuts: the world of martial arts, these great cosmic space fantasies, Dr. Strange, and the magic side of the Marvel Universe."[32]