It's a difficult keeping track of the rumored villains for director Joss Whedon's The Avengers: First it was Loki and possibly the Hulk, then it was the alien Kree and Skrulls, then it was just Loki, followed by the Kree and Skrulls again, and then Loki ... possibly with the Skrulls. And now another possibility has emerged -- not instead of Loki and his alien friends, but rather in addition to them.

WARNING: Potential spoilers follow, so if you don't want to know more, don't venture past the big Avengers logo.



According to Latino Review, the Infinity Gauntlet that Marvel showcased at Comic-Con International and featured in Thor as one of the items in Odin's Vault will have a familiar wearer in The Avengers: its creator Thanos, the Death-obsessed Eternal bent on genocide and galactic conquest. There are, of course, numerous comic-book connections at play in the rumor, as Loki had at one point possessed the Infinity Gems, and Thanos once possessed the Cosmic Cube (which Loki is shown with in Thor). Plus they've both gone up against the Avengers.

I'm not really sure how, or why, the Skrulls would fit into the scenario -- surely Loki and Thanos are a formidable enough menace for Earth's Mightiest Heroes -- but then again, maybe they don't. All we know for sure at this point is that Tom Hiddleston is reprising his role as the god of mischief in The Avengers, and it's going to be him "versus seven of them."

The Avengers, which opens May 4, 2012, stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Clark Gregg and Samuel L. Jackson.