Following news this weekend that James Gunn (Super, Slither) is in talks to direct Guardians of the Galaxy, we’ve now got some more brilliant news regarding another of Marvel’s highly anticipated Phase Two films in the form of the female lead in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the sequel to last year’s blockbuster.
Chris Evans will of course be reprising his leading role, with word surfacing last month that Anthony Mackie is in talks to play Falcon, with Samuel L. Jackson returning as Nick Fury, and Sebastian Stan expected to return this time as the antagonist, Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier.
And now the New York Post there are three brilliant young actresses circling the female lead: Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air, The Twilight Saga), Felicity Jones (Like Crazy, Albatross), and Imogen Poots (Fright Night, 28 Weeks Later).
The character’s identity is naturally being kept under wraps at this point, but it’s thought that she could be Sharon Carter, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and younger relation of Peggy Carter, played by Hayley Atwell in the original.
Brothers Anthony and Joe Russo (Welcome to Collinwood, Community) will be at the helm, directing from a script by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, who penned the first film.
All three actresses now in the running are incredibly talented.
Kendrick was nominated for an Oscar for her brilliant performance opposite George Clooney in Up in the Air, and has blockbuster experience through The Twilight Saga. She currently has no less than six features either completed or in post-production, and is currently in theatres lending her voice to ParaNorman.
Jones has equally been a very promising rising star, coming away from Sundance last year with an award for her performance in Like Crazy. She’s teamed up with Drake Doremus once more for an untitled project, currently in post-production, along with Ralph Fiennes’ return behind the camera in The Invisible Woman.
Poots was most recently seen here in the UK in indie film Comes a Bright Day, and has been filming Terrence Malick’s Knight of Cups, alongside Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, Wes Bentley, and Cate Blanchett, so she naturally will have gained plenty of experience amongst such esteemed talent on that set.
The choice is an incredibly difficult one, and I don’t envy the filmmakers whatsoever having to choose.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is set for release on 4th April, 2014, and will follow on from Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World next year. It is of course already expected to be one of the biggest and no doubt best blockbusters of 2014, and we can’t wait to see how it unfolds. With a bit of luck, we’ll have some firm casting for you soon.
