this is "nightline." tonight, ashley's war. they came from all across america. >> join the program recruiting women to serve alongside special operations forces in afghanistan. if you knew what life was like for these female soldiers. we see one woman's story of finding for strength than she ever knew she had. off scene, the cast of avengers avengers. tonight, super mom scarlett johansson tells us how she kicked butt while pregnant. and everywhere you look tv's favorite family is getting back together for an even fuller house. yes, they're reuniting. but firth, the "nightline 5".."

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good evening. thank you for joining us. not many know what life was like for female soldiers in afghanistan. tonight, we're getting a glimpse inside their world. male and female soldiers alike are confronted with a unique

challenge in a muslim country. that's where this elite group of women came in. tonight, diane sawyer brings us the untold story of a brave band of sisters. >> in the night in the rugged desert of afghanistan, something most americans did not know. female soldiers teaming up in combat zones with the best of the best. >> they were tall they were short. >> the common denominator was athletic, fierce and absolutely determined. >> she has written a book about the women responding to the call to make history. emily miller former platoon leader in iraq. >> i have always wanted to serve. i wanted to prove i could be valuable out there. >> and ashley white, a quiet

young newlywed. >> she was always the quiet one from the day she was born and she always had strengths that amazed us. >> first test for all of them physical. the brutal training known as 100 hours of hell. >> we would workout three times a day. >> tested to the limits of human endurance 20 miles a day carrying 40 pounds. >> we were carrying all sorts of objects. >> and what about that debate whether a woman has the strength to move a fallen comrade? >> could you? >> if i lacked at something, if i had a weakness, one of the girls always could make up for that weakness. >> and together you're stronger. >> absolutely. >> than even you know. >> yeah, absolutely. >> and surprise, the tiny 5'2"ml

ashley white who aced the toughest test of all, fast-roping, astonishing the men by using only her arms not even needing her feet. female soldiers about to be sent in because of the cultural differences abroad. special operations forces couldn't search women inside their homes even though the women held many secrets. >> there were also circumstances in which there were weapons buried underneath the house? >> sometimes beneath the women. >> the phrase you know, how to say, i'm a woman, don't be afraid. i would call out to them. that would put them at ease right off the bat. >> the marines pioneered the idea to have women do it. but for women to do it, it required their hair. >> just so show that we were women. we would take off our helmet once the compound was secure and kind of let our hair down.

to be able to make that connection. let thee we were women. >> not readily obvious we were women. that was really important to gain their trust. >> and among them the girl called the megatron quiet blonde. >> she was a wife she was a daughter. she had a soft side, but she wasn't afraid to be feminine and be a warrior at the same >> they are ready with a mission so secret they could not even talk to their families. >> what did you think she was going away to do? >> we thought she was going away to set up medical tents and take care of the women and children of afghanistan. >> never knowing her daughter and the other women and the team were heading out night after >> i remember, i ran out of the bird and all i could see, taste, was just dust. just all around me. so heavy that i couldn't even find the area where i needed to be to rendezvous with the team.

>> then october 2011 ashley on a routine mission when suddenly the nightlights up like roman candles. >> what they walked into was basically a booby trapped compound. another soldier stepped on an ied. >> it claimed her life and the lives of two rangers and it was the first time a lot of americans learned that these women had also been there in the dark. >> it was surreal. >> not possible that the heart of a -- >> no. >> yeah, didn't seem possible. >> it was how a mother learned it too. >> first we learned is when they brought her home. at dover air force base. >> what was the last thing you said to her? >> i told her to be careful. and she hugged me and she says, mom, i want the best of the best, i'm going to be fine.

i'll be home quicker than you know. >> this here is the combat action badge. >> ashley's room in ohio. her mother keeps her hat and combat boots. >> we liked it when it came home because it still smelled like ashley. when the community heard they poured into the streets to salute a valiant warrior. to this day, her band of sisters keep the memory of a time when they showed everyone how women answer the call. >> in the army asked for women to do this mission, she felt the need to say send me. and i think that that level of selflessness is kprierdextraordinary and uncommon. >> i've never been with a group of women like this accomplishing a mission like this that was so important with the best of the best. >> so what is courage?

>> i think courage is being afraid and doing it anyway. it's doing the thing that you're afraid of, tackling it and going forward and never ever settling for things that are easy. always taking the hard route over the easy one. >> i'm diane sawyer for "nightline" in new york. >> ashley's war is in bookstores today. for more of the interview, you can visit abcnews.com. next he was named people magazine sexiest man alive. now chris hemsworth is back in avengers avengers: age of ultron. and this is no mere mortal. the engineering advances. but the passion to drive a mercedes-benz is something that is common... to every generation of enthusiast. the 2015 dream machines, from mercedes-benz. today's icons.

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what do you get when you combine six of the world's sexiest movie stars with one of the grossing movie franchises of all time? we're with the cast of avengers: acknowledge of ultron. >> mr. mayor of marvel what's it like to bring these people back together again? >> as the temporary seated mayor, i would like to say it doesn't get any better than this. >> with robert downey jr.'s iron man and the big green guy male bonding, jeremy renner's hawkeye, an analog warrior, with chris hemsworth and chris evans,

captain america. >> more like -- >> yeah -- >> sexiest man alive. >> me? >> hey, look thanks for letting it go. >> "avengers: age of ultron," it has the goods to keep this franchise's fans fed. >> we have the easy-ish job because we are, joun, iyou know building these characters over many films. it's playful and fun for us. >> by the way, great job being pregnant for the whole shoot. >> right? >> oh, thank you. >> as black widow, a five months pregnant scarlett johansson would cat nap during the cast's games in her trailer. >> you were just so happy.

>> what happened? >> i don't think anyone's ever made as much money during a gestation as you did. >> i made more money being pregnant than -- >> was that additionally challenging? >> it was great. i was so fortunate to be able to work in that and have a very cushy delightful job. >> whatever. man, it's a trick. >> the comeradery clear as vodka. >> it's fun interesting in the scenes when we're not in our outfits. it's nice to see the characters as people. >> we got yelled at. >> what is defined as too much fun on a set? >> schoolyard giggling. >> when you can't find your notes. >> when he looks like he's about to have an aneurysm in front of you. >> the first one felt for me

like the first day at school, who's who nervous energy am i going to get recast. this time around was like high school reunion. >> weary of save the world battles, tony stark seeks to fashion an artificial intelligence bot to keep the galactic peace. when the ai goes uh-oh, the a avengers must battle the gone rogue ultron. faced off with downey some three decades ago. >> first of all, nobody will disagree that he is easily one of the top three eccentrics on planet earth. he's just picked up a conversation we were having in like 1983. he was like bob, romantic love it's everything. i was laying down.

i was like jim? >> my agent called me up josh would like you to do avengers. i said do what? she said a robot and that was all she had. so when he first spoke, i said what can i bring to the table really. he said a confluence of humor and danger and threat and childishness but always retaining a level of grav tas. >> i didn't understand what ultron was or how it was going to be a character. that first day, i think we all kind of clapped. we were like all right. all right. >> new advances in motion capture technology brings such characters as ultron and hulk get to perform onset with other

actors. >> which i didn't get to do last time. i was in a closet. actually, i was in the paint shop. >> mark is finally out of the closet. >> i kicked the doors off the hinges when i came out. >> with a big smile. >> not that unhinged. his hulkness risking the wrath of the avengers hr department as a co-worker woos him. >> it makes perfect sense because these characters have had a lot of trauma. so they see, you know a similarity in one another. and it brings them close together. >> when we drop down into the real issues that these super humans are dealing with i think that's really what makes avengers work so well. >> created for comic books, they spend much of avengers: age of ultron in pursuit of adulthood.

>> so we can end the fight and go home. >> harry potter movies three brave kids. i was like oh, god. it was gratifying finding out people do want to see a movie about grownups. >> gets served by newcomers aaron taylor johnson and a sensational elizabeth olsen. but it's largely started by actors who started families themselves. >> am i the only guy here without children? >> yes. >> you're exiled. >> when are you going to have kids, chris? >> tonight. >> tick-tock. >> it's my intentllect level. we like colors and shapes. >> even as it's fulfilling massive box office expectations

by the walt disney company, the iconic roles haven't overwhelmed these actors's careers. >> there was a hedges-- some at first. >> i too have to thank robert for giving me an entry into this world, not just as a friend, hey, come and do this. but also just as opening the door for a quirky find of character actor doing mostly indy movies. so thank you. >> i'm glad we had this today so i could be properly thanked. >> for "nightline" in burr bank, california. looks good.

avengers: age of ultron in theaters may 1st. >> what could bring john stamos and the crew back together again? hint, it's going to be a fuller house this time around. >> announcer: abc news "nightline" brought to you by red lobster. it looks tasty, order it. because at red lobster's create your own seafood trio i can have it all. choose 3 of 9 dishes for just $15.99. like the creamy baked lobster alfredo. and the sizzling brown butter shrimp scampi. and fresh soy-ginger salmon topped with sweet pineapple salsa. i could go on. but there are three things on one plate waiting for me ust go wouldn't you? but hurry it can't last forever. ♪ ♪ stop dreaming. it's time for the volkswagen stop dreaming start driving event. get a $1000 volkswagen credit bonus.

hurry in, during the final days of the volkswagen stop dreaming start driving event and you can get 0% apr, plus a $1,000 volkswagen credit bonus on 2015 jetta and passat models. don't wait.offers end april 30th. [plumber] i need to be where the pipes are. so i use quickbooks and run my entire business from the cloud. i keep an eye on sales and expenses from anywhere. even down here in the dark i can still see we're having a great month. and celebrate accordingly. i run on quickbooks.that's how i own it. i want my foyer to smell more like a foyer. i want his bedroom to smell like he's away at boarding school. surround yourself with up to 6 hours of luxurious, long-lasting scents... ...introducing new unstopables air refresher.

finally tonight great news for "full house" fans. now the cast can finally confirm they're gathering under the same roof again for more of our favorite family dysfunction. >> have mercy. >> mercy has now been delivered

for fans of the popular sitcom "full house." john stamos confirming netflix picked up 13 episodes of the spinoff. >> we've been trying for so many years to do it right. i think we finally got it perfect. >> it will bring back some of your tanner family favorites. the lovable annoying best friend kim my. >> good morning, i'm here for the weekend. >> mother of three, candace cameron tore it up on abc's" dancing with the stars." mother of two and author. she battled drug addiction following "full house." the cast remains close. many of them reunited for a super bowl commercial.

>> don't you think it's time we all get our own places? >> stamos will revive his handsome-haired character uncle jesse, but will he be reunited with his on-screen love. >> i think we would all like to come back if the powers that be are fair to all of us. >> will we see the return of michelle? we reached out, but no word yet. >> if we can't get the olson twins, we're going to dress you up. thank you for watching abc news. tune into "good morning america" tomorrow. we're online at abcnews.com. good night, america.

thank you for throwing me a shower. you are the best matron of honor ever. let's not say "matron." okay, everybody, who wants a pizza bagel? all right, pizza bagels! and i made prosciutto e melone. all right, prosciutto e melone! marie, i told you i was taking care of the food. i know, dear. save room, everyone. i also have insalata caprese. oh, insalata caprese!

sorry.