Marvel has had great success appealing to an older audience with its lineup of direct-to-DVD animated features released by LionsGate.  Both of the Ultimate Avengers releases did well (see 'Ultimate Avengers 2 DVD Debuts at #5') and the recently released Invincible Iron Man also appears to have great prospects.  But after the release of a Doctor Strange animated feature in August, the next Marvel direct-to-DVD movie will be targeted at a younger audience with the producers adhering to the rules of Saturday morning in order to reach the widest possible audience.  Though Marvel claims it won't skimp on the action in its new film, the violence and the effects of that violence will be toned down.

Tentatively entitled Teen Avengers the new younger-skewing project will feature characters created especially for the film and will not be (as some have speculated) based on Alan Heinberg's Young Avengers.  The screenplay for the new Teen Avengers film is being written by Christopher Yost, who was the story editor for the recent Fantastic Four animated series.  No release date has been set for the Teen Avengers project, but an early 2008 debut appears likely.