'The Avengers 2' Rumors: 'Age of Ultron' Release Date, Loki Update, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch Casting News, Black Widow, Hawkeye's Roles Expanding

"The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron" is set to hit theaters May 1, 2015. Following Comic Con 2013 in which "The Avengers" sequel's title was revealed, fans have been buzzing about the latest Joss Whedon, Marvel Studios creation. Clearly by the name it seems that Ultron will play the main villain in the new movie, but don't count out a character such as Loki from future movies just yet. It's also been all but confirmed that Quick Silver and Scarlet Witch will be in the "The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron" as well.

The latest casting rumors for "Avengers 2" is that "Kick Ass" star Aaron Johnson will be playing Quicksilver while Saoirse Ronan could be playing Scarlet Witch, according to Cinema Blend. Meanwhile, Loki won't be in the 2014 Avengers film, but as Screen Crush notes, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige has openly acknowledged that Loki's popularity makes him an intriguing option going forward.

There also is news that in "The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron," director Joss Whedon will be giving the Black Widow and Hawkeye both more time on the big screen. Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner's characters could have a bigger role in the sequel's storyline. While speaking at Comic Con via Screen Rant, Whedon talked about writing for Hawkeye:

"It's very much a global Avengers film. A lot of the movie has to do with their place not just in America, but the world. Part of the fun for me, definitely this time around, is writing Hawkeye. He did get possessed pretty early by a bad guy and had to walk around all scowly for most of the movie so now it's nice to actually have the character there and see him interact with the other guys."

When talking with Nerd HQ in a Q&A session, Whedon also explained his thinking behind Black Widow's character:

"Natasha is a huge part of the sequel because you do want to concentrate on the people who don't have their own franchises. Although she in 'Cap 2,' [and] she's great. She was the most fun for me because she's not a hero, you know, and it's something that I read-and I feel bad that I can't remember who wrote the book-but it's in one of the books explaining, 'These guys are heroes, you are a spy. It's a different thing-it's a different skill set-and you don't have their moral high ground or any of that good stuff.' And that just makes her so interesting to me. So yeah, the stuff I've got going on with her in the second one is killer."

"The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron" is still over a year away from being released, so there is still time for plenty of rumors. Let's also not forget all the updates that will be coming once videos and photos from the set start getting leaked!