Sam Jackson Confirming Elizabeth Olsen For Scarlet Witch In AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON?

While speaking with WSJ, Sam "Nick Fury" Jackson dished a bit on the production of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Confirming that shooting would begin before March and that James Spader is playing Ultron. However, he added one unannounced detail about the film. That Elizabeth Olsen will indeed be apart of the film. Neither, Marvel or outlets have confirmed Olsen for the role of Scarlet Witch which she had been in talks for. Jackson previously worked with Olsen on Spike Lee's Oldboy and Aaron Johnson (Quicksilver candidate) worked with her recently on Legendary Pictures' Godzilla.

“I don’t think we begin shooting before March of next year. I know we’re shooting in London, that James Spader is Ultron and going to be the bad guy, and that we added Ms. [Elizabeth] Olsen [who will play the Scarlet Witch], but I don’t know what she’s doing, if she’s on the inside or the outside. I haven’t seen a script.”

Joss Whedon Hinting Again That Scarlet Witch And Quicksilver Might Be Villains In AVENGERS 2?

While promoting his new feature film Much Ado About Nothing, Joss Whedon spoke briefly on The Tavis Smiley Show (via CBM) about the sequel. He talked about including Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver in Avengers 2. Which seemingly hinted to their history of being foes of The Avengers. An aspect that has been sort of hinted at previously by Joss. The main villain of the sequel seemingly might come down to Thanos, The Collector (Benicio Del Toro?) or Ronan The Accuser but it's sounding like the Maximoff twins will also give The Avengers some conflict. It's not known if Evan Peters (Kick-Ass, American Horror Story) will also play Quicksilver in the sequel, after being cast in the role for X-Men Days of Future Past.

"We are introducing Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch who are mainstays of The Avengers universe, they're foes, they've been allies and they're very interesting to me because I grew up reading The Avengers. They have powers that are visually exciting, different from the characters we've seen before so I'm excited to knock them against The Avengers and see what shakes loose." 

TO BE CONSIDERED: Who Should Play Scarlet Witch And Quicksilver In AVENGERS 2?

It has been confirmed by Joss Whedon that villain siblings turned heroes Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver will be new additions to Avengers 2. Whedon added they would represent an aspect of the world not entirely thrilled with the Avengers. Nothing says this statement means they'll be straight up villains (Thunderbolts/H.A.M.M.E.R.) but sounds like they'll have their clashes with the team. I assume the brass at S.H.I.E.L.D. and World Governments could be unhappy that they have superheroes running around without leashes. Which might be the seeds of Civil War which has been teased before.

Apparently, Marvel might be using Saoirse Ronan as a possible model for Scarlet Witch. Not sure if that means they'll be looking for an actress her age or someone with a similar mix of action/dramatic roles. Marvel will likely hold off announcing any casting for Avengers 2 and Phase Three's Ant-Man until Comic-Con 2013 in July. Yet, I have a few names that could make the mutant siblings really standout.

SCARLET WITCH (WANDA MAXIMOFF)

RUTH WILSON (Luther, Lone Ranger, The Prisoner, Anna Karenina): Ruth Wilson has some serious Marvel connections playing roles alongside actors Idris Elba, Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell. Even actor Ian McKellen who plays her character's would be father Magneto. She had been linked for possible talks for a role in Avengers 2 months back. Disney might be looking to up her profile as Ruth already is the female lead in their Lone Ranger tentpole this Summer.

JESSICA CHASTAIN (Zero Dark Thirty, The Help, Lawless, Mama): Jessica almost played Maya Hensen in Iron Man 3 but ultlmtely took the lead in Zero Dark Thirty instead. While earning an Oscar nomination for ZDT, she did state being open to working with Marvel in the future. She has the talent and popularity to bring enough life to the character.

JESSICA BROWN FINDLAY: Jessica was in the running for a role in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and also had a small cameo in Iron Man 3 with her scenes from Downton Abbey playing in the background. Marvel seems to love television actors for new roles and Witch would be a role that would likely become a staple for future Avengers sequels. Similar to hiring Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Findlay could balance out playing baddie and anti-heroine.


QUICKSILVER (PIETRO MAXIMOFF)

BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH (Hobbit Trilogy, Star Trek Into Darkness, Fifth Estate, Sherlock): Benedict has long been a fan favorite to play Doctor Strange but his current run of playing villains could make him an excellent Quicksilver. To be honest I could careless about Quicksilver but someone like Ben could really give substantial dimension to him. His turn in Star Trek Into Darkness proved his ruthlessness as a villain which might be needed for the Avengers sequel to be darker than the previous one. Marvel has a history of casting Star Trek alumni with Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Zoe Saldana (Gamora) taking roles. Other cast members such as Chris Pine and Alice Eve had been in the mix for the leads in Captain America: The First Avenger. Even Simon Pegg has stated interest in playing a villain in Edgar Wright's Ant-Man.

RYAN GOSLING (Drive, Place Beyond The Pines, Only God Forgives): Getting Ryan Gosling is a bit of a longshot but I think he could work well with Joss Whedon and the cast. He's a very dedicated actor with dramatic chops but might be harder to lure into a Marvel contract. The fact he's almost entirely sworn off comic book films would be a giant get for the studio. Ryan's got a solid background with stunt training (martial arts, weapons, stunt driving/motorcycling) thanks to his numerous action films such as Drive, Only God Forgives, Gangster Squad and The Place Beyond The Pines.

CHARLIE HUNNAM (Sons Of Anarchy, Pacific Rim, Green Street Hooligans): Charlie is very suitable actor that could work within the Marvel blueprint. While he has Pacific Rim on the horizon this  Summer it hasn't made him a household name at this point. Similar to Cumberbatch, Charlie has a massive following thanks to his series S.O.A. Originally, Charlie had been one of the few candidates to play Thor before Chris Hemsworth ended up being cast in the role. He was recently linked for possibly playing The Flash in Justice League but that film is being put on hold until the box office returns for Man of Steel come in. Marvel would be smart to sign Hunnam up before Pacific Rim 2 or Justice League gets a greenlight.

FAN ART: 'THOR 2' Banner Artwork Featuring Villains And Asgardians

'AVENGERS 2' Could Be Getting Superheroines With Powers

Some of the complaints (be it few) is that Avengers essentially didn't have a single superheroine with powers. While we got two rather badass female SHIELD agents with Black Widow (Johansson) and Maria Hill (Smulders) they have limited talents. Also, they are not exactly meta-humans like the main four members (Thor, Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man). EW was able to speak with writer/director Joss Whedon and the cast about his issue. The consensus is that we'll be seeing more of a female presence in Avengers 2. So which superheroines will be joining the lineup?

WASP: All signs point to Janet van Dyne (The Wasp) alongside her boe Dr. Hank Pym (Ant-Man) joining the team by the way of Edgar Wright's Ant-Man. Her powers depend on the Pym suit she is wearing which includes the power of flight, shrinking, massive growth/strength and stinger blasters. Janet is equally as wise-cracking as Stark and it could be breath of fresh-air to see a less serious female character thrown into the mix. Since Widow and Hill are super serious government agents who barely crack a smile.

SCARLET WITCH: The second most recognizable female Avengers member is Wanda Maximoff better known as villain turned hero Scarlet Witch. Marvel confirmed they share the character's rights with Fox. She has the ability to manipulate probability via her "hexes" (often manifesting physically as "hex spheres" or "hex bolts"). These hexes are relatively short range, and are limited to her line of sight. Considering she is Magneto's daughter and their current focus is a young Magneto it's doubtful we'll be seeing her in the X-Men films anytime soon. The only catch with Marvel's version of her is that she can't be connected to Magneto, The X-Men, The Brotherhood of Mutants or even hint to her powers are from a mutant origin. It's possible that she could turn up in Thor 2 or Doctor Strange since her character will likely have cosmic/mystical powers rather being a mutant. Witch had been wanted for Iron Man 2 but those plans were scrapped. Scarlett Johansson was originally set for the role of Wanda according to Favreau during an interview with Wizard. This was before Emily Blunt exited the Black Widow role and Johansson replaced her.

MS. MARVEL: We could also see Air Force/SHIELD pilot Carol Danvers given alien Kree powers during an accident and became Ms. Marvel. Danvers' powers include flight, super-strength and other abilities. Interesting enough, Fox had issues with using Rogue in the original X-Men trilogy because they couldn't give her Ms. Marvel's powers which Rogue stole while a her turn as a villain. Rogue was instead turned into a young runaway similar more to a character like Jubilee.