ComicBookMovie.com is reporting that while various reports have said that the filming of “Iron Man 3″ would start late May, after the release of “The Avengers,” sources close to ComicBookMovie have learned that filming could start much earlier.

A source told the site that Marvel “will have staff in Wilmington as early as mid-March,” and shooting could start either the last week of April or the first week of May. Another source said that Marvel is doing its best to keep the superhero hype up by creating buzz around “Iron Man 3″ when “The Avengers” is in theaters.

However, ComicBookMovie wants people to know that the sources’ reports could be false, seeing how inconvenient it could be for Robert Downey, Jr. to do the various press junkets for “The Avengers” and start filming “Iron Man 3″ at virtually the same time. But who knows? Anything can happen, I suppose.

You can read the full report at ComicBookMovie. What do you think about this news? Do you think Robert Downey, Jr. can do double-duty on Marvel movies? Give your opinions in the comments section below.

“The Avengers,” written and directed by Joss Whedon and also starring Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner and Samuel L. Jackson, is set to be in theaters May 4.

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