"The end is near."

Those are the first words spoken by Thanos in the final trailer for Avengers: Infinity War. After appearing mostly to the background of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Mad Titan will finally take center stage as he actively begins his quest to collect all six of the Infinity Stones.

Though moviegoers are likely to not know much about Thanos heading into Avengers 3, fans of the comics should be pretty familiar with the villain's goals and motivations; he wants to destroy all life in the universe in order to gain the favor of his beloved Death. However, as more information continues to be released for Infinity War, the more we learn that MCU Thanos and Marvel Comics Thanos are not one and the same.

RELATED: Thanos' Infinity War Motivations Are Almost Noble

While their goals are still very similar (wiping out the universe, or half of it, at least), the reasoning behind MCU Thanos' actions make him a much more sympathetic figure, which will work in his favor going forward.

The Noble Mad Titan

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In the comics, Thanos is responsible for the destruction of Titan, the planet he once called home. However, in the MCU, Thanos actually tried to save his planet but was unsuccessful. This failure becomes the catalyst for the chain of events that lead to Infinity War, according to Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige.

“He’s from a planet called Titan that’s no longer inhabited because of things that he thought he could help prevent, and he was not allowed to do that,” Feige explained. “What he feared most happened, and the planet and everybody on it basically went extinct. He vowed not to let that happen again. He thinks he sees the universe going down the tubes. He thinks he sees life expanding outward unchecked. That will bring ruin, he believes, to the universe and to that life.”

Typically, the loss of loved ones is enough to garner the support of fans and send a hero off on his big adventure -- but we're talking about Thanos, here, and not Spider-Man. However, there remain some similarities. Both individuals take a vow to never let the terrible thing that happened in their past to take place again. After Peter's Uncle Ben was killed, he swore he'd live by the motto, "With greater power, comes great responsibility" while fighting for justice and peace. Thanos lost the inhabitants of Titan -- whether that was by his own actions remains to be seen -- and believes the universe is going down the tubes. The only difference is, instead of trying to save the entire universe, Thanos decides one half will live by sacrificing the other half.

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Young Thanos' Origin

Another way Marvel Studios is going out of its way to differentiate Thanos from the majority of its other forgettable villains is by highlighting his early years on Titan. Again, full-fledged origins in superhero films are usually saved for the heroes, with fans only getting an abbreviated portion of a villain's backstory. Perhaps after hearing so much backlash over its underdeveloped antagonists, the studio decided to go all out for the villain its been building to since he first appeared in the mid-credits scene of 2012's The Avengers.

Depending on how far back Marvel Studios decides to go with Thanos, we could see him on Titan in different time periods. For example, we know compared to Titan's other residents, Thanos was born deformed and thus treated like an outsider among his people. If this is depicted when the Mad Titan is a child, teenager and adult, it will drive the point home with audiences that the bullying he experienced is part of what drove Thanos to become the man he is now.

RELATED: Avengers: Infinity War Will Show a Younger Thanos

After all, Josh Brolin, who will voice Thanos in Infinity War, also had this to say when describing his upbringing: "But at the same time you feel for him. You want to write him off as insane, and yet what he’s doing makes sense, if you break it down."

Thanos And Gamora's Relationship Explored

As Gamora is one of the abducted children of Thanos, it stands to reason that she'd be privy to firsthand knowledge of how ruthless he can be. Though Thanos slaughtered Gamora's people and ran off with her, the film will show moments of love between would-be father and daughter, which no one would have expected entering the ensemble movie.

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"When you see the relationship with Gamora and you see that evolves, God I wish I could tell you. I can’t!" Brolin told Entertainment Weekly "When [directors Joe and Anthony Russo] came up to me after we had done maybe three quarters of the film, they said, “It wasn’t necessarily intended that you feel for this guy as much as you do.” Obviously he has a grand plan, like somebody who’s pulling in kids for their own selfish bloodshed. But he has a capacity to love very much and very deeply.”

Rarely would the words "love" and "Thanos" be used together in the same sentence, but that's exactly what Brolin did above when discussing the Guardian and Titan. Parents can be a tricky thing in the MCU, with heroes like Tony Stark and Peter Quill having complicated relationships with theirs. This trend looks to continue in Infinity War, but on a much larger scale.

RELATED: New Avengers: Infinity War Photo Spoils Major Thanos Moment

Through his relationship with Gamora, we'll see Thanos' capacity to love very much and very deeply. So yes, while he has murderous tendencies, the Mad Titan's sympathetic side will still be in play, possibly making some fans want to root for him, similar to the reaction Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger received in Black Panther. And if that happens, Infinity War can look to replicate and even exceed the amount of success that Black Panther has found with audiences.


Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, Avengers: Infinity War 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 hits theaters on April 27.