Joseph Gordon-Levitt Rumored to Have Contact With Marvel Studios

Actor and filmmaker Joseph Gordon-Levitt has made "contact" with the creatives at Marvel Studios, according to a new report. Gordon-Levitt starred in the Christopher Nolan-directed Inception and reunited with the Batman director on The Dark Knight Rises, where he played Gotham City police officer John "Robin" Blake. The 39-year-old actor starred in another comic book adaptation when he played gambler Johnny in Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, and most recently played a super-powered character in Netflix movie Project Power. As a filmmaker, Gordon-Levitt directed himself and Black Widow star Scarlett Johansson in his 2013 feature directorial debut Don Jon.

According to insider Charles Murphy, Gordon-Levitt has "recently been in contact with at least one of the creatives" at the Kevin Feige-led Marvel Studios (via Murphy's Multiverse). It's unclear from the report if that contact is the beginnings of a potential role or a creative role behind the camera.

In recent years, Gordon-Levitt has been rumored for such roles as Star-Lord in 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy (ultimately won by Chris Pratt), Scott Lang in 2015's Ant-Man (won by Paul Rudd), and Stephen Strange in 2016's Doctor Strange (won by Benedict Cumberbatch).

Despite longstanding rumors that the Nolan universe would continue after Dark Knight Rises with Gordon-Levitt taking over as the new Batman, a JGL-led Batman spin-off never materialized at DC. Earlier this year, Gordon-Levitt said during a Reddit Q&A that he likes "how Nolan's Batman Trilogy has a conclusion."

Murphy speculates Gordon-Levitt could have met with Marvel over its rebooted Fantastic Four, officially announced by Feige during a reveal-heavy Disney Investor Day presentation earlier this month. Sony-Marvel's Spider-Man trilogy director Jon Watts will helm the reboot that has not set an announced cast or release date.

Along with a 10-title slate releasing throughout 2021, future Marvel Studios projects include a third Ant-Man and sequels to Captain Marvel and Guardians of the Galaxy. Titles without release dates include feature films Fantastic Four and the Mahershala Ali-led Blade reboot, and big-budget Disney+ series Moon Knight, She-Hulk, and newly-announced series Secret Invasion, Ironheart, and Armor Wars.

Gordon-Levitt stars in thriller 7500, now streaming on Amazon Prime, and plays Richard Schultz in The Trial of the Chicago 7, now streaming on Netflix.

Marvel Studios next releases premiere series WandaVision on January 15, 2021, on Disney+. Black Widow opens in theaters on May 7, 2021.