Avengers: Infinity War directors tease introduction of new character

There's a feeling that the Marvel Cinematic Universe intends to start phasing out the Avengers as we know them now with Infinity War, and begin the process of handing over the reins to a new generation.

With Black Panther and the new Spider-Man already making their debuts in Captain America: Civil War, it seems almost inevitable another hero will step into the spotlight in the Russo brothers' next entry into the MCU; with a new team presumably slowly taking shape.

Speaking to Yahoo Movies, Joe and Anthony Russo stated that though the brothers currently have their "hands full trying to tell the story we have with our preexisting characters... that's not to say we're not going to introduce a new character."

The most obvious candidate, and the most widely speculated, is Brie Larson's Captain Marvel; with her casting proving fairly perfectly timed for the beginning of Infinity War's production. "If they ever cast that role, maybe," Anthony joked about Larson's involvement. "Do you know if they’ve cast it yet? That's one we're going to plead the fifth on."

However, if the Russos really are just playing coy with Captain Marvel's Infinity War debut; it's likely she won't actually appear as the spandex-ed hero, but more likely as alter ego Carol Danvers in her nonpowered former days as a U.S. Air Force Officer.

That would presumably prevent overlapping with her 2019 solo film, which we know will feature her origin story; as well as avoiding overcrowding in a film which is already slated to feature the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Avengers: Infinity War will hit UK cinemas 27 April 2018.