Anthony and Joe Russo
Joe Russo has hit at the Academy for their continual snub of comic book movie when it comes to the Oscar nominations.
Russo teamed up with his brother Anthony earlier this year as they helmed Captain America: The Winter Soldier - which was their first Marvel film.
The Winter Soldier was both a critical and commercial success when it hit the big screen - it is currently the fifth highest grossing movie of the year.
Despite the success of the comic book genre in recent years, Russo remains stunned that this genre is continually overlooked when it comes to the awards season.
Speaking to Deadline, the director said: "It's strange that the comic book film genre is so often thought of only in terms of its economic merits.
"Yes, it's shockingly popular and continues to grow, and yes, the box office success of these films can often embarrassingly outweigh their merits, but as Christopher Nolan perhaps first proved, real and valuable filmmaking can be achieved with the genre.
"It's sad that some people, seemingly soured by having to endure the massive cultural presence and expectations that even mediocre or poor examples of the genre can generate, react by trying to reject the genre as a whole."
The Winter Solider has grossed over $714 million at the global box office, and is the fourth highest grossing Marvel film of all time: behind Avengers Assemble, Iron Man 3, and Guardians of the Galaxy.
Joe and Anthony Russo are set to reunite for Captain America 3, and they have already started work on the script.
The movie will hit the big screen in 2016 and looks set to follow on from events of Avengers: Age of Ultron. It has already been rumoured that we will be seeing both Robert Downey Jr and Jeremy Renner as Iron Man and Hawkeye in the film.
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