‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Directors Joe And Anthony Russo Sign On To Director ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Parts 1 & 2

“What will happen to the Marvel Cinematic Universe once Joss Whedon leaves?”

That’s been a big question on many fans’s minds from the very beginning. Being the glue that holds together an entire film franchise is no easy task, and at the end of the day, Joss Whedon is just one man, and his leaving was bound to happen sooner or later. Avengers: Age Of Ultron is just over a month from its U.S. release, and that time is nearly upon us. Luckily for fans, Disney and Marvel already have a succession plan. Ever since the Russo Brothers finished up the well-received Captain America: The Winter Soldier, fans worldwide were speculating that they’d be the ones to carry on.

Now, over a year after The Winter Soldier‘s hit theaters, that rumor is proving to be true. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Russo Brothers have officially signed on to direct Avengers: Infinity War, Part 1, and Avengers: Infinity War, Part 2.

“The brothers will direct both parts of the studio’s Avengers: Infinity War, taking over the billion-dollar franchise from Joss Whedon, who directed the first two Avengers films. (The second one, Avengers: Age of Ultron, opens May 1.) They’ll film Infinity War in one long shoot beginning sometime in 2016, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter.

No writers are attached, but the brothers will likely reunite with Winter Soldier‘s Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. They collaborated on Civil War, which the Russos will begin shooting next month.”

While speculation has been rampant about the pair taking on The Avengers for a while, there have been a couple of curveballs thrown that has cast some doubt over whether they’d actually be able to commit. The biggest question mark was the newly re-invigorated Ghostbusters franchise from Sony, and whether or not that would interfere with their availability. As recently as a couple weeks ago, Deadline was breaking news that the Russo Brothers had been added to the brain trust at Sony for the Ghostbusters franchise, and that the duo were planning to direct and produce the next film.

It is unknown how this new deal with Marvel will affect the Russo Brothers’s deal with Sony, though it almost seems safe to conclude that they’ll have to pass Ghostbusters off to another worthy helmer, as the Avengers franchise likely to be an all-encompassing project.

The Russo Brothers are currently hard at work on Captain America: Civil War(which has quickly become an Avengers movie in its own right), which is slated for a May 6, 2016 release. Avengers: Infinity War, Part 1 will follow nearly two years later on May 4, 2018, and Part 2 will be released on May 3, 2019.

Are you looking forward to the Russo Brothers taking on the next couple Avengers movies? Let us know below.