As the excitement over Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice dies down and we gear up for Captain America: Civil War, arriving early next month, a lot of news on future Marvel cinematic universe installments is coming down the pike. Here are a few things we can share with you today:

Tessa Thompson Joins the MCU

Tessa Thompson, who broke out just two years ago in Dear White People then followed it with last year's phenomenal Rocky reboot-sequel Creed, has joined the cast of Thor: Ragnarok. According to Deadline, the actress's exact role is not being revealed but she's "a kind of superhero" and new love interest for titular God of Thunder (Chris Hemsworth), and she'll reportedly appear in other future MCU movies, as well. In addition to the lead, she joins Cate Blanchett, who is expected to be a new villain, Tom Hiddleston, who is back as recurring villain Loki, and Mark Ruffalo, who is on board as Bruce Banner/Hulk. The movie opens on November 3, 2017.

Thor and Star-Lord Confirmed for Avengers: Infinity War

We assume everyone and their Auntie May will be showing up in the two-part Avengers: Infinity War, but we also wonder if there's actually room for every MCU character in the ambitious blockbuster sequels. Confirmations are nice in that case, and we just got two: Thor and Star-Lord. Comicbook.com got the scoop, and both are interesting because Infinity War directors Anthony and Joe Russo haven't worked with them before. Thor isn't in their upcoming Captain America: Civil War and Star-Lord is so far only in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Without giving away too much, one of the Russo Brothers shared that Ragnarok will lead into Infinity War:

"I'm excited to work with Thor," Joe Russo says. "They're doing some really interesting stuff with Ragnarok and where he's gonna be at the beginning of Infinity War is gonna be a very interesting place and I think very profound. I think he's gonna have a real emotional motivation after that."

Avengers: Infinity War - Part 1 and Part 2 Will Truly Be Two Separate Movies

If you're tired of Hollywood dishing out one meal divided into two plates, so to speak, you needn't worry about the Infinity War movies. Talking to io9, the Russo Brothers and writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely stated that this isn't one big movie cut in half. They share a title and a connected story, but Part 1 and Part 2 will really feel distinct from each other. Here's what one of the Russos told the site:

“The movies are very very different from one another,” said Anthony Russo. “It’s not a part one and part two scenario, necessarily. They’re just two different expressions. I think it creates a misconception that we’re shooting them at the same time.”

On top of that, the Russo Brothers said that, to them, actually the Infinity War installments will turn out to be two parts of an even larger four-part narrative. Anthony stated that there's a through line from their first Marvel effort, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, to Civil War to the two Avengers sequels. Joe continues the thought here:

“There’s an overarching story that’s going to be told through all four films,” added Joe Russo. “And I think having the amount of characters we have in [Civil War] certainly prepares us to deal with probably triple the amount of characters in Infinity War.”

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is Definitely Coming

Also in the same io9 article, Marvel head Kevin Feige had this to say about the future of the MCU beyond what is officially known right now:

“We’re only working on what’s been announced through the end of 2019,” said Feige. “And it is still a big chess board for 2020 and beyond, but certainly I would say Guardians 3 is [one film that’s] up there. I don’t know what exactly the order will be.”

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