Marvel Comics fans were in heaven on Wednesday, April 11, in Hollywood, as the much-anticipated "Marvel's The Avengers" premiered at the El Capitan Theatre. For all their favorite superheroes made the scene, from Robert Downey, Jr., who reprises his Iron Man role in the action flick, to Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, the character who turned up for the first time in "Iron Man 2."
Putting on those skin-tight leather catsuits to play her character is exactly what Johansson wants to be doing at this point in her career; the 27-year-old told reporters at an earlier press conference that she's in for the long haul with Black Widow.
"It's not often that you play a character that you know you can franchise, that you know you can branch out," Johansson said. "It's a first for me, really. So, the possibilities are endless. And this character's had such a long story; she's been around for forty years, so there's a lot in there. So if the fans are into Black Widow, then I will be there. If they build it, I will come!"
And build it they did, as writer-director Josh Whedon joined Stan Lee, Marvel's heart and soul, in creating the new film. Jam-packed with most of the company's key heroes, "Marvel's The Avengers" brought screaming crowds to Hollywood Boulevard, all out to see their favorites.
There were the heroes we've seen in earlier Marvel movies: Chris Evans, who plays Captain America; Chris Hemsworth, who is Thor; Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury; and Mark Ruffalo, the latest of a string of actors to play the Hulk. And other Marvel characters abounded on the red carpet as well: two-time Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner who plays Hawkeye, Tim Hiddleston as Loki, and Cobie Smulders, who is best known from the hit television series "How I Met Your Mother," as Maria Hill.
Other cast members who got swept up into the night's giddy excitement included Clark Gregg, who escorted his wife Jennifer Grey; Stellan Skarsgard, who arrived along with his son, "True Blood" hottie Alexander; and producers Jon Favreau and Kevin Feige.
Famous fans of big action-adventure movies clamored for a seat in the theater, too. The Walt Disney Company now owns the Marvel franchise, so Disney channel favorites were everywhere, from Debby Ryan, Janel Parrish, Shay Mitchell to Bella Thorne and Kat Graham. Seth Green made the scene, too, as did Karina Smirnoff, Audrina Patridge, Mario Lopez, Aisha Tyler, Chelsie Hightower and Richard Grieco.
