We are just a few short months away from Marvel's The Avengers kicking off the summer movie season in theaters May 4. Even though it hasn't opened yet, it is almost a foregone conclusion that we will be seeing a sequel in the next few years, and director Joss Whedon already has a few ideas about what he would like to see in a follow-up.

This is what the filmmaker had to say when asked how a sequel could be any bigger than the first Marvel's The Avengers.

"By not trying to. By being smaller. More personal, more painful. By being the next thing that should happen to these characters, and not just a rehash of what seemed to work the first time. By having a theme that is completely fresh and organic to itself. I want to know what makes them tick, what makes them flawed, what makes them fight - and ultimately, what makes them awesome. I go to these movies for those moments when the heroes define themselves, either through action or deliciously overwritten speeches."

Next up for Marvel Studios after Marvel's The Avengers is Iron Man 3, which is already slated for a May 3, 2013 release. Thor 2 will be next, set for release on November 15, 2013, and then Captain America 2 in 2014. It isn't known when a sequel to Marvel's The Avengers will get started, but it will likely debut in the summer of 2015.