‘The Avengers 2’ Set for May 1, 2015

And the long, winding road back to Joss Whedon's "Avengers" series has begun. The official word has come down from the Disney/Marvel camp: The Avengers 2 is coming May 1, 2015.

Well, it might not be called The Avengers 2, but we can use it as a working title. In a short but concise statement, it was confirmed:

"The Walt Disney Studios has announced a release date for Marvel Studios’ sequel to the biggest Super Hero blockbuster and third highest grossing film of all time, Marvel’s The Avengers. Joss Whedon returns to write and direct the UNTITLED MARVEL’S AVENGERS SEQUEL set for release May 1, 2015."

And there are five expected Marvel films to get through before we reach the next Avengers outing, including Iron Man 3 (already in production), Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Solider, Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man. With Whedon set to return (and expected to have a hand in each Marvel project, credited or otherwise) and all of his main players signed on, the Marvel film universe is here to stay for the foreseeable future.