WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for the plot of Avengers: Infinity War, in theaters now.
Avengers: Infinity War fan theories were a dime a dozen before the film released. Everyone and their mother had heard some rumor about who was going to die or how Thanos was going to be stopped at the last second, most of which was proven false. Not all, though.
While the majority of Infinity War rumors ended up being presumptuous at best, a select few actually made the cut. Most of the theories that ended up being right seem to have been either educated guesses or the result of insider knowledge, though, notably, the latter is not impervious to fault.
Marvel Studios did an admirable job keeping so many Infinity War secrets under wraps for so long, especially considering that some of the craziest theories ended up being true. Here are a few of the big ones, though.
Loki Dies Early (And For Real)
One of the earliest rumors about Infinity War came from no single, discernible source, but was rather hinted at heavily in the trailers. That theory revolved around Loki, the Asgardian god of mischief who appeared briefly in promotional materials but only ever against a single backdrop, causing some to wonder if the trickster died early in the film.
The only sign of Loki in the trailers was of him standing among the dead and dying Asgardian refugees, holding the Tesseract aloft and seemingly handing the item of unfathomable power over to Thanos. Those who never bought into Loki’s claims of reform at the end of Thor: Ragnarok thought that the villain would join Thanos’ Black Order, or that he had been the one to alert the Mad Titan to the whereabouts of the Space Stone. Those theories proved false, as far as we know.
RELATED: The Biggest Infinity War Rumors That Turned Out to Be False
What proved to be true was that Loki did, in fact, die very early in the film. Thanos attacks the Asgardians refugee ship and slaughters nearly everyone. After tangling with both Thor and the Hulk (and winning), Thanos demands Loki hand over the hidden Space Stone. He does, but he also makes a move on the Mad Titan with a hidden blade. Thanos chokes Loki to death, proving one of the earliest Infinity War rumors to be true.
Red Skull Reappears
Most Marvel Cinematic Universe fans considered the chances of Red Skull reappearing somewhere in the film franchise to be between slim and nil, but Infinity War surprised in several ways. The film brought the former H.Y.D.R.A. head back to the field in a strange way, proving true the previously laughable theory that the long lost Red Skull would play a major role in Infinity War.
RELATED: Russo Bros. Tease the ‘High Cost’ of Undoing Infinity War’s Ending
No theorist was entirely sure of the role Red Skull might play in the movie, though some thought he may be a surprise member of Thanos’ Black Order or occupy a discrete, cameo role. The truth, as we all know by now, is way crazier.
Red Skull was last seen at the end of Captain America: The First Avenger, when the villain was finally able to reclaim the Tesseract. Being a housing unit for an Infinity Stone, the Tesseract had its own ideas about being acquired and shot the Nazi leader deep into the recesses of space. On the planet Vormir, Red Skull was seemingly fated to become the Stonekeeper, the ethereal guardian of the Soul Stone. He schools Thanos on how to acquire the stone, but we will get to that in a moment…
Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='A Marvelous Infinity War Arrival -- Well, Kind Of']
Captain Marvel Saves the Day (Sort Of)
Everyone just knew Captain Marvel was going to appear in Infinity War prior to the film’s release. Carol Danvers would swoop in at the last second to save the day, blasting the Black Order with photon energy or pummeling Thanos into the dirt, liberating Earth in one fell swoop.
Well, that did not turn out to be the case. Thanos effectively won in Infinity War, succeeding in eliminating half the life in the universe (most of the onscreen losses being fan favorites). But the post-credits sequence hinted that all might not be lost.
RELATED: Avengers: Infinity War’s Marketing Lied to Us — and That’s Just Fine
While Captain Marvel did not make a physical appearance in Infinity War, her presence was alluded to in the post-credits sequence when Nick Fury, likely assuming that the Avengers had lost some major battle, used a custom pager to send a message. That message bears Captain Marvel's insignia and her blue and red color scheme. So, while Carol Danvers might not be front and center, her presence in Avengers 4 has been all but assured.
The Gamora Equation
This is a weirdly specific one. Some time ago, a list of theories was posted to the 4Chan message board, reportedly the result of a leak at Marvel Studios. As with most anonymously submitted leaks it was easy to laugh off this list of claims as nothing more than an attention-grabbing stunt. Well, it is still an attention-grabbing stunt, but it is one with some validity to it.
The theory claimed that Thanos would confront the guardian of the Soul Stone, who would inform Thanos that the only way to acquire the stone would be to trade the one thing he loved. Gamora, being his daughter, fits the role perfectly, and so Thanos kills her and gains control of the stone. The theory also states that Gamora's death would compel Nebula to aid the Avengers in their fight. While the last part could be argued, the rest certainly came to pass.
It is important to note that the theory is just one of many from the purported leak, and that the rest of the claims are largely and fabulously wrong. Still, as far as seemingly fake leaks go, this one nailed a really weird one dead on.
Dinklage is Eitri
That's not the only thing that 4Chan leak got right, though. In between massive blunders (like Valkyrie leading the Asgardian refugees to safety and Loki becoming Thanos' advisor), the leak also nailed Peter Dinklage's role to a startling degree of accuracy. The leak properly pegged Dinklage as Eitri, the king of the dwarves and a master craftsman. The leak even nailed Eitri's sizable presence.
This all came after weeks of fans scrutinizing trailers and TV spots for some hint of who Dinklage would be playing in Infinity War. Most were certain the actor would be voicing Corvus Glaive until that was shot down, while the rumor about him playing Pip the Troll was never really snuffed. Some even thought Dinklage would play M.O.D.O.K. due to his reverence for the character.
RELATED: Infinity War’s Ending All But Guarantees Adam Warlock’s MCU Arrival
In the end, though, the leak seems to be a mix of solid guesses gleaned from details in the trailers and perhaps a touch of insider knowledge, though if that is the case then there is no telling why someone would pepper their theory post with aggressively wrong assertions.
Avengers: Infinity War is directed by Joe and Anthony Russo and stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Bettany, Anthony Mackie, Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Olsen, Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Tom Hiddleston and Josh Brolin, among others. The film is in theaters now.