In a series of announcements of little surprise by Marvel and Disney (kicked off by the reveal of The Avengers 2), the studio has announced that Joss Whedon will be returning to the franchise for said sequel. Disney Chairman Bob Iger broke the news on a conference call, saying Whedon would not only write and direct a sequel, but also develop a Marvel-based TV series for ABC. [/Film]

With the massive blockbuster stalling out around $1.46 billion at the worldwide box office following its May release, one can expect the studio putting this near top priority. But before they get to that we’ve got “phase 2″ of the superhero universe, which includes sequels to Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, as well as newcomers Ant-Man and Guardians of the Galaxy. So, don’t expect this sequel, which would presumably bring back our entire team and some new characters, as well as the villain Thanos, until 2015 at the earliest.

What do you think of Whedon coming back? Are you interested in a Marvel TV show?