Neither Marvel nor the Russo Brothers could live with their own failures. Where did that bring them? Back to each other.
I’ll give the Russos this: they directed four of the best MCU movies, crescendoing with the back-to-back pop-culture peak of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame.
They made it look so easy; juggling plot threads from a decade-long back-catalogue, making two impossibly coherent blockbusters, and creating iconic moments (Cap grabbing Mjolnir!) that’ll echo in cinemas forever. Nobody can take that away from them.
But, here’s what separates the duo from the likes of Sam Raimi and James Gunn: they don’t just flourish in the Marvel machine… they need it. They’re boys with toys who are very good at doing what they’re told; no wonder Kevin Feige wants them back.
Marvel and the Russos need each other
According to Deadline, the Russos are being lined up to direct Avengers 5, Secret Wars, and consult on the MCU on “various fronts.”
In 2022, Feige said they wouldn’t be returning for the next Avengers movies, and the Russos alleged they wouldn’t be “ready to do anything with Marvel until the end of the decade” (although they’ve always been open about their interest in Secret Wars).
Things have changed, with both sides in dire straits. Excluding Deadpool & Wolverine, poised to be an enormous success, the MCU’s sharp decline over the past five years is inarguable. Box office receipts have dropped, Rotten Tomatoes scores have dipped, and its rampant expansion on Disney Plus has numbed any sense of event around a new release.
Let’s look at the Russos’ career after 2019: they directed Cherry (bad) and The Gray Man (abysmal); they produced Citadel (a series that’s more forgettable than the amnesia that’s part of its plot), Extraction (great, in fairness), and Everything Everywhere All at Once (brilliant).
Without Papa Feige’s hands on their shoulders, they’ve yet to helm a watchable movie on their own. It’s a terrible omen for The Electric State, their $300 million sci-fi movie for Netflix (that’s $100 million more expensive than The Gray Man, which should make you throw up in your mouth).
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They are good producers, happy to collaborate rather than enforce their own vision, more comfortable under Marvel’s umbrella than having to summon original thoughts. It’s almost never a place for auteurs to shine, and that goes for its audience too; remember when Raimi cooked in Doctor Strange 2 with flying musical notes, and people didn’t like it?
There are exceptions: the Guardians of the Galaxy movies wouldn’t have worked without Gunn, and Ryan Coogler brought Black Panther to life like nobody else could. But what is it about the Russo Brothers that appeals to you; maybe it’s their distinct lack of any visual flair that hasn’t been concocted by hundreds of VFX artists, or perhaps their steadfast absence of personality in their work is more palatable.
Lest we forget, they’ve also dropped a few clangers over the years: they claimed theaters were “inherently elitist”, they said Captain America: Civil War’s muted palette was intentionally “devoid of color” to reflect the moral ambiguity of the characters (give me a break), and Joe Russo advocated for movies made by AI.
They’re project managers, not filmmakers, ported into a world that needs diligent footsoldiers to deliver a hit. Why should we be excited about dependability, when it’s two of the most uninspiring directors working today?
Raimi, the director of the best superhero movie of all time, was right there. “They haven’t asked me yet. I hope they do,” he said in April. Who knows if he was ever asked, but I doubt it. Even if Marvel wanted to, cowardice would prevail; they want reward without risk.
Feige needs his Gray Men; together, they’ll build it, and the billions of dollars will come.
Before it hits cinemas, you can find out what we know Deadpool & Wolverine’s first 40 minutes, who’s (probably) playing Lady Deadpool, and find other new movies on streaming.
