Marvel Announces Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye And More In ‘Captain America: Civil War’ Cast Line-Up

Chris Evans is not the only star in the upcoming “Captain America: Civil War.” Marvel has revealed there will be at least 16 big celebrity names joining the second sequel of the superhero flick, which is expected to be even better than the recent blockbuster “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

Not even a month after the release of the second “Avengers” film, Marvel has announced the start of the principal photography of the third “Captain America” in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. The production will shoot in the state, as well as in locations in Germany, Puerto Rico and Iceland.

Evans, who stars as the titular superhero/Steve Rogers, will be joined by a bunch of other superstars, including his “Avengers” co-stars Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark/Iron Man), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Clint Barton/Hawkeye), Don Cheadle (Jim Rhodes/War Machine), Elizabeth Olsen (Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch), Paul Bettany (Vision), Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson/Falcon) and his “Captain America” co-star Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier).

Those are nine huge names already! Too bad, though, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner/Hulk) weren’t mentioned in the line-up. As explained in the still-playing flick [SPOILER ALERT], Thor has to go back to Asgard to learn more about the visions he just saw, while the Hulk has gone MIA. Samuel L Jackson (Nick Fury) and Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill) seem to be absent from the ensemble cast as well, but fans remain hopeful that they will show up for a cameo.

But if that list isn’t impressive enough, Marvel anted up the luminary game with the addition of Paul Rudd and Martin Freeman. Rudd will make his first appearance alongside the avenging superheroes as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in the film. Freeman, best known as Bilbo Baggins in “The Hobbit” films and as Dr John Watson in the British series “Sherlock,” has been cast in an unspecified role.

Reprising their roles from the previous “Captain America” film are Emily VanCamp (Sharon Carter) and Frank Grillo (Brock Rumlow/Crossbones). William Hurt (Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross), Chadwick Boseman (T’Challa/Black Panther) and Daniel Brühl. For the record, that’s 16 names confirmed for “Civil War.”

Freeman As Everett Ross

Back to Freeman’s secret role, Latino Review’s El Mayimbe thinks that the English actor will be playing Everett Ross, a character that appeared in the Black Panther comics. Ross is a U.S. government agent who is an expert on the fictional African nation of Wakanda.

Black Panther (Boseman) is in the film, and so it just makes sense that Ross will also be there. And if the speculations are true, Freeman will play the “interrogator.”

Synopsis And Release Date

“Civil War” picks up where “Age of Ultron” left off. Cap, along with Black Widow, now leads the new team of Avengers after the old ones have retired. The superheroes’ handling of an international incident has led to political pressure in installing a system of accountability and a governing body that decides when to enlist the team’s service. “The new status quo fractures the Avengers while they try to protect the world from a new and nefarious villain,” the press release states.

Directors Joe and Anthony Russo will helm the film, which is set for release on May 6, 2016.

Contact the writer: a.lu@ibtimes.com.au