Could The Wasp be making an Avengers appearance?

Barely a day goes by without another Avengers rumour circulating.

It's hardly surprising considering that Marvel's superhero team-up is one of the most ambitious blockbusters ever conceived.

Disney star Demi Lovato had been linked to a role in the Joss Whedon movie, but that has now been soundly denied across the board.

Apparently Whedon and Marvel are still looking to cast another significant female role though.

No doubt they're looking to balance out the testosterone-heavy cast (Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth) and capitalise on Whedon's penchant for ass-kicking ladies.

The Wasp is currently the hot favourite expected to add some girl power to the line-up.

The character, like Ant-Man, takes on the characteristics of her namesake insect, and she has the ability to shrink to a tiny size and fly.

Eva Longoria was attached to the role some time ago, although that rumour never came anywhere close to being confirmed.

The Black Widow (played by Scarlett Johannson) is currently the only big female role in the movie, which is set to shoot in April 2011, ahead of a summer 2012 release.

With production imminent, expect to hear some verified casting news early in the new year.

Matt Maytum
Editor, Total Film

I'm the Editor at Total Film magazine, overseeing the running of the mag, and generally obsessing over all things Nolan, Kubrick and Pixar. Over the past decade I've worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at 12DOVE, and you can often hear me nattering on the Inside Total Film podcast. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.