Welcome to the Marvel Cinematic Universe!

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MCU stands for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and as the title states, it is a cinematic universe not unlike Star Wars and Harry Potter with its characters and canon based directly upon original Marvel Comics (which have been around since as far as the 1940s). The MCU canon is built by all the films made by Marvel Studios since 2008's The Incredible Hulk, and includes various one-shots and comics.

Below is a detailed introduction to the present state (as well as what we know about the future) of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in its entirety. If you're interested in reading-up on the comics, we've also got you covered with guides and advice for the best place to start.



SO WHAT SHOULD I WATCH?
In chronological order, current movies in the MCU include: The Incredible Hulk (2008), Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010), Thor (2011), Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), and The Avengers (2012).

There are also 'Marvel One-Shots' which add to this universe. These are:
'The Consultant', which joins together the events of Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. It was released on the Thor Blu-ray. 
See it here.

'A Funny Thing Happened on he Way to Thor's Hammer', which connects the events between Iron Man 2 and Thor. It was released on the Captain America:The First Avenger Blu-ray. See it here.

'Item 47', which features events following the discovery of a discarded Chituari gun. It was released on the Avengers Blu-Ray from August 29th in some markets and on September 25, 2012 in the US. See some clips here and here.

Marvel will be releasing collection box-sets of all movies in September, there are two editions with possibly varying availiability due to geographical location. The first is a regular six-disc box set isted on the UK Amazon released on September 17, and the other is a deluxe ten-disc box tuffed full of special features and exclusive memorabilia with full details set to hit April 2, 2013. Blu-ray region code information is available here.

THEY'RE MAKING MORE OF THESE RIGHT?

\\The starred sections are not entirely up to date and to be updated over the next few days.\\
You betcha. So far the movies which have been out only form 'Phase 1' of Marvel Studio's evil plan to take over the world, and there are currently five announced movies of 'Phase 2' which will be adding to the universe, these are:

*Iron Man 3 (Release Date: 3 May 2013)
- So far it seems that Tony Stark will be headed to China, where he will encounter the MCU equivalent of comic Iron Man's archenemy, the Mandarin. Early set photos have shown us not only the War Machine dressed up like the Iron Patriot but also the possibility of M.O.D.O.K. coming to the MCU. Chinese talents such as Andy Lau has already signed on to the movie. The movie, whic kicked off shooting on the 23rd of May, is now in the stages of post-production. The first trailer has been released (and can be viewed here), a super-bowl TV spot is also expected to appear in the coming days.

*Thor: The Dark Worl (Release Date:8 November 2013)
- Details are far and few in between, but it appears that Thor will be exploring more of the nine realms of the world tree, and the dark elves are now his enemies. Everyone we met in the first movie will likely reappear, and first rumours suggest that the lovely villain Enchantress will be making an appearance. Josh Dallas will also not be returning as Fandral, and Zachary Levi has signed on to be his replacement. The movie started filming in Summer 2012 in London nd has already been completed.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier Release Date: 4 April 2014)
- As fans have predicted and prayed for, we will be definitely seeing the return of Captain America's best friend Bucky Barnes (and actor Sebastian Stan) as the Winter Soldier in the next Captain America adventure We've heard that the movie will be the one most closely connected with the Avengers, and mainly set in the present day, with major connections to SHIELD. Everything else is pure speculation, but actors have confirmed that we will be seeing Nick Fury, Maria Hill and the Black Widow (and possibly Hawkeye all appear) in some capacity. It is expected that the new Captain America movie will take a more espionage/thriller direction in the modern day. Directed by the Russo brothers of 'Community' fame, production will begin in March with some filming set to take place in Cleveland.

Guardians of the Galaxy Release Date: 1 August 2014)
- A superhero team of interstellar heroes who act as 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. We will be seeing Starlord, Drax the Destroyer, Rocket Racoon, and Groot. As the marvel movie we know least about, story, casting and director are still unknown. However, knowing Marvel Studios, events and characters in the film will likely have some sort of relation with our existing characters, most likely with Thor and Loki (who are 'advanced, space-travelling aliens') perhaps in Thor: the Dark World, Thanos, or the Red Skull (teleported to an unknown world at the end of Captain America: The First Avenger).

Ant-Man
- A movie long in development, the film directed by Edgar Wright will tell the story of one of the original comic-book founders of the Avengers - Hank Pym, or Ant-Man, who discovers technology that allows him to grow and shrink to any height. Early speculation suggests the appearance of the Wasp - dilettente Janet Van Dyne, Hank's designated love interest and another Avengers founder left out of the movie-verse. There is not much information at the moment, but the film is expected to be out in 2015.

*If you want to keep up with MCU news, join up wit ontd_marvel and we'll keep you covered!

WHAT'S WITH THE RECASTING?Marvel Studios CEO Kevin Feige has likened MCU characters (with Iron Man and Robert Downey Jr. as an example) to James Bond, stating that should it become necessary, the studio would likely build upon existing canon with a simple recasting of characters.

Notably, this has already occurred with two existing characters in the MCU. The character of James Rhodes (Tony Stark's best friend Rhodey - War Machine), played by Terrence Howard in the original Iron Man, was replaced by Don Cheadle in the sequels. Similarly, Bruce Banner, the Hulk, was recast after negotiations with Edward Norton broke down, and is now played by Mark Ruffalo.

While in the former case it's been speculated that money may have been the issue, regarding the latter, it's been hinted that that there were disagreements as to the direction to be taken by the character (and also probably over money). Marvel Studios is known for its tendency to greatly involve itself in its movies' development process due to its plans (mainly to set up  and maintain continuity for future films), and this is cited as the key reason that Iron Man 2 is considered the worst MCU film to date. Director Patty Jenkins, originally set to direct Thor 2, also left due to creative differences induced by the studio's tight control.

In the upcoming Thor 2, the character of Fandral has been recast due to actor Joshua Dallas' commitment with television series 'Once Upon A Time'. The new Fandral will be played by Zachary Levi, who had originally been tapped to play the character, but had to turn down the role due to his commitments with the (now cancelled) television show Chuck.

So if you notice recasted characters, just take it in stride and think about James Bond, because in reality, anything might happen! However, considering that each key actor has signed on for a total of six MCU movie appearances (which include cameos), recasts of fan-favourites such as Robert Downey Jr. is highly improbable until at least the end of Phase 2, which won't be until 2015 at the earliest. Even then, if the MCU is still continuing, it is likely these actors will choose to sign new contracts to reprise their character.

Currently, actors known to have signed multi-film contracts (which appears to be typically six) include: Robert Downey Jr. (5/6), Samuel L. Jackson (5/6), Chris Evans (3/6), Chris Hemsworth (3/6), Tom Hiddleston (3/6) and Sebastian Stan (1/6). Others likely include Scarlett Johansson (2), Jeremy Renner (2) and Gwyneth Paltrow (4), though it is unclear how many films they have signed on for.

WHAT OTHER CHARACTERS MIGHT GET A MOVIE?Many many. Various individuals affiliated with Marvel Stuidos and MCU movies have alluded to possible spin-off films for characters such as the War Machine (Iron Man), the Warriors Three (Thor), the Winter Soldier (Captain America), Nick Fury, Black Widow, Hawkeye and SHIELD.

In terms of spin-offs, out of all the existing characters in the MCU, a Black Widow or SHIELD film (and very possibly a Winter Soldier film, following Captain America 2 or 3) currently seem most likely, and others have described the new Captain America film as the SHIELD/Black Widow movie. However, currently character spin-off are still considered too risky, and there is no existing plan (or budget) to make one reality anytime soon.

For those we haven't met, Marvel Studios has hired people to pen movie scripts for characters such as Dr. Strange, and the Black Panther. If MCU continues to do well, we may see these characters on the silver screen someday soon. Also, films for the Guardians of the Galaxy as well as Ant-Man will be released in 2014 and 2015.

Click here if you'd like the details on potential MCU projects.

WAIT, WHAT ABOUT SPIDER-MAN AND THE X-MEN?
Those are to do with character and film right issues. Throughout the 80s and 90s Marvel sold the film rights for its most popular characters such as Spidey, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four to various movie studios. The way the deals were struck meant that unless films are actually made in a set number of years, the film rights revert back to Marvel (which is why Daredevil and Fantastic Four reboots are happening, as well as why the X-Men and Spidey have received such rapid 'reboots').

Essentially, Spider-man belongs to Sony, and the X-Men (w/ Deadpool), Daredevil as well as the Fantastic Four (and rumour say, Dr. Strange), are owned by Fox. Since Marvel Studios can only work with the characters which they actually have the film rights for, that leaves us with the Avengers cast that we have, and very little hope for cinematic crossovers This is also part of the reason why Loki's army in 'The Avengers' is the Chituari (from the Ultimate universe), and not the Skrulls as otherwise speculated. As the Skrulls are considered to be part of the Fantastic Four franchise, all sorts of hell may have been raised if they were to be used.

However, the rumour is that Marvel Studios and Sony have actually attempted to incorporate Spiderman into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In the Avengers movie, the OzCorp building from 'The Amazing Spiderman' was originally meant to appear in the New York skyline alongside Stark Tower, however timing issues meant that plans ultimately fell through. Though Spidey is not part of the MCU right now, it is now looking increasingly likely that he will be some day.

On the other hand, Kevin Feige has stated tha due to the way the contracts were written, it s possible for X-Men members the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver to appear in both Marvel and Fox movies.

answer sourced from posts in this thread

All in all this song made back at the time of Iron Man 2) sums it up quite well.

Click to view

ARE THERE COMIC TIE-INS?There are many tie-in/prequel comics (recognised MCU canon) currently in existence. These are:

Iron Man: I am Iron Man
Iron Man 2: Public Measures
Iron Man 2: Agents of SHIELD
Iron Man 2: Security Measures
Captain America: First Vengeance
The Avengers Prelude
Black Widow Strikes

The Iron Man and Captain America comics are all collected in a single volume titled: 'Avengers: The Road to the Avengers' Click for Amazon), published on the 14 March 2012.

WAIT WHAT HAPPENED WHEN? THIS IS ALSO CONFUSING!Never Fear! Marvel has actually prepared a graphical timeline detailing the chronology of every major event that has happened throughout the movies up to the Avengers. Check it out below (click for the big version).



THAT'S COOL, BUT WHAT ABOUT COMIC CANON?The best thing to do when it comes to getting into comics is really to just pick one up and start reading. Unlike books or movies, for comics there really isn't a set 'starting point' because there is literally decades of 'lore' (that most comic fans haven't even had the time to explore). To get a feel for the universe and the way things currently are, having a read of roughly anything from the early 2000s to now is more than good enough.

Don't feel intimidated by the complexity and the universe's history, and don't worry about spoilers (absolutely no one stays dead anyway). Pick anything up, have a read, and if you find something that sounds interesting or see a reference to an event that you want to know more about, then just go find the comic/volumes and read it! Borrow or browse some of the completed story-arcs, see if you find it interesting, and before you know it you will be a well-versed comic fan.

But if you want a more structured guide, fans have written some very handy pieces designed to introduce movie fans to the wonderful comic universe.

*Here's a few fan guides to get you started:
  -   An Issue by Issue Guide to The Avengers for The Iron Man / Captain America and Ficcing Fan
  -   An Issue by Issue Guide to Captain America Comics for the Ficcing Fan

*Want to read the comics too but don't know where to start? Try these guides:

IRON MAN:
- Marvel Comics Database Wikipedia / Marvel Universe Wiki
- Required Reading: Iron Man
- Required Reading: Iron Man Collections
- The Essential Iron Man Reading List

If anything, Volume 4 of Iron Man, beginning with the Extremis arc by the amazing Warren Ellis is always an excellent place to start, not only does it hint at possible things to expect in future installments of the Iron Man movies, the series is also very well-written. From here on out it's pretty much all guaranteed awesome.

THOR  
 - Marvel Comics Database Loki) / Wikipedia Loki) / Marvel Universe Wiki Loki)
-  Thor: Where to Start
-  Required Reading: Thor Collections

Personally I'd recommend going from the 2007 Thor Issue 1 onwards if you're looking for the most relevant information and interesting storylines, characterisations are fun, not to mention you get a taste of the glorious female!Loki and the fantastic character of Balder. ;)

CAPTAIN AMERICA
- Marvel Comics Database / Wikipedia / Marvel Universe Wiki
Captain America: Where to Start
Required Reading: Captain America
- Required Reading: Captain America Collections
- Where to Start Reading: Captain America

If you just came from the movie, Ed Brubaker's run (especially Winter Soldier storyline from the very start of volume 5 onwards) is absolutely fantastic, and you will learn of the possible future for the Cap franchise. Later on you can follow Steve's adventures in the Secret Avengers, and get to know Bucky as he takes on the mantle of Captain America. After the events of Fear Itself there is also our regular Captain America series as well as the Winter Soldier series, both of which I highly recommend.

BLACK WIDOW
 - Marvel Comics Database / Wikipedia / Marvel Universe Wiki
 - Recommended Reading by fyeahblackwidow @tumblr

HAWKEYE
 - Marvel Comics Database / Wikipedia / Marvel Universe Wiki

AVENGERS, CROSSOVERS, MARVEL EVENTS!
 - Marvel Comics Database / Wikipedia / Marvel Universe Wiki
 - Where to Start Reading: The Avengers
 - 5 Avengers Comics to Read

The Avengers main series itself is great if you're interested in meeting more Marvel universe characters while still having your favourites (Tony, Steve, Thor etc.) around If you enjoy events and crossovers, I highly recommend starting from the not too distant Avengers Dissembled series (lots of glorious angst) and everything onwards. If you just want a taste, then read Civil War (widely agreed to be the best thing ever). Otherwise, I also recommend Siege (Loki shenanigans galore) and Fear Itself. Or just pick up the current event in progress- Avengers vs. X-Men, if you're interested in seeing everyone's favourite mutants.

If you feel like an alternate universe with darker characters and story-lines, the Ultimates (and the Ultimate universe) is a fantastic series to check out. For a bit of (gorey but) cracky fun, try Marvel Zombies!

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Here's a few extra links
TV Tropes Wikipedia  Marvel Wiki  Major Event Timeline

Last Updated: 29.01.2013

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