With Captain Marvel's release date so close to Endgame's, we suspect that the Brie Larson flick will answer some Infinity War questions. But how? Which questions will be answered, and which will keep us waiting until Endgame? We took a deep dive into the end of Infinity War, put on our wild-speculation helmets, and came up with some possible connections. So let us know what you think of our 10 ways Captain Marvel could connect Avengers: Infinity War to Endgame.
10. It’ll Explain The Pager
We've known for a while now that Captain Marvel was heading to the MCU. However, we didn't get an in-universe confirmation of her existence until the end of Infinity War. That's when Nick Fury summoned her with a high-tech (yet somehow still '90s?) logo-displaying pager.
When Captain Marvel comes out this March, we'll finally get to see the origin of that pager, and just how it works to contact Cap. And when Endgame comes out the following month, we'll presumably see her get that message. Then, I don't know, head to a cosmic payphone? Things were weird before cell phones folks.
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9. Cap Might Be Tony’s Ride Home
At the end of Infinity War, Tony Stark was left stranded, wounded, and Spider-Man-less after losing a fist-fight with Thanos. When we saw him again in the Endgame trailer, Tony was still drifting through space, lost in what seems like a hopeless situation. But hopeless situations are kind of Captain Marvel's specialty. With her ability to travel intergalactically, and her already incredible distance from earth, we think Cap might be the superpowered tow-truck that gets Iron Man home. Otherwise, we're not sure how he'll get back. Because it doesn't seem like Wong's going to be teleporting anyone anywhere.
8. The Kree Might Know Something About Thanos
Captain Marvel will deal with a previously unseen area of the MCU, but not an entirely new one. Long before Tony Stark put on the Iron Man suit, both Thanos and the Kree made themselves known throughout the galaxy. We've even seen them interact before. Remember that conversation Ronan the Accuser has with Thanos in Guardians of the Galaxy? Well, Ronan's headed back to the screen for Captain Marvel, and with him, the possibility of more backstory for Thanos. This could mean we get more information on the Infinity Gauntlet, a weakness of Thanos, or even on the Snap itself. We know that the Kree-soldier-turned-human champion is the key to defeating Thanos, and Captain Marvel will be when we find out how.
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7. It Could Make Earth A Spot On The Galactic Map
Out of all the billions of planets confirmed to be on the massive map of the Marvel Cosmos, why is little Terra Firma so important? It's a frequent rest stop for the Asgardians. It's been home to several Infinity Stones. Heck, It's the favorite spot of the best, most smilin', watcher. So what's the deal?
Well, Captain Marvel may help explain why earth is so important, or the events in the movie might actually become the reasons themselves. In fact, this May we might just learn how Thanos heard of earth, which could be important to ultimately undoing his plan. Of course, he probably heard about earth while searching for the Infinity Stones, but who knows? Maybe he heard we had good Thai food.
6. It’ll Explain Where Cap Has Been All These Years
Why didn't Nick Fury recruit Captain Marvel to the original Avengers? Why didn't she help earth out of the many different problems it found itself in since the '90s? All these questions—and more similar ones—are guaranteed to be answered in Captain Marvel. This could tie directly into Endgame in several ways. Maybe Fury deemed her power too great, and the fact that he's calling her now truly means she's the last option to save half the universe. Maybe her alliance with humanity isn't completely established by the end of her solo flick, and calling her means that a reluctant Kree/human alliance has to be struck. Whatever the reason for her absence, the fact that she's coming back means that the stakes of Endgame are higher than any Marvel movie yet.
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5. It Will Establish Cap As A Leader
Kevin Feige has confirmed that Captain Marvel is the new center of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Like Iron Man has been until now, Carol Danvers will be the new major figure of the MCU. However, from what we’ve seen of the Captain Marvel trailers, Carol will enter the MCU as very much a follower. Presumably, this means part of her solo film will revolve around her breaking off or taking command of the Kree army.
The implications for Endgame, then, are pretty huge. When Tony dies (sorry kids, it’s probably going to happen), Captain Marvel will step up as a new leader. And it’s in her own film that she’ll grow into the ability to do that.
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4. It Could Introduce A Time-Travel Plot Point
The most popular fan theory as to how the Avengers will save the day in Endgame revolves around time travel. In Endgame, some fans assume, one or more of the original Avengers are heading back in time, to somehow change the course of Thanos’s plan. It may be that they change something already established in one of the previous 20 Marvel films, but it’s more likely that they’ll change something we learn about in Captain Marvel. Why? Well, to rewrite part of the MCU pre-Infinity War could invalidate a lot of Marvel’s previous films. It would be a lot easier to present a fact in Captain Marvel and then immediately rewrite it the next month in Infinity War. What that very important story point could be is anyone’s guess.
3. It Could Explain More 'Snap' Backstory
Alright, hear us out. What if the Snap isn’t a complete surprise to Nick Fury? After all, his reaction to slowly disintegrating wasn’t a question or utter shock. Instead, it was to send a single message to Captain Marvel. He didn’t even clarify what was going on in the message, he just gave her a buzz. Could this be because the possibility of the Snap is already established between Cap and Nick? Maybe something like the Snap has already happened before, and Cap told Fury to call her only if it does again. Heck, there’s even a possibility that the Infinity Gems are the reason the Kree are on earth in the first place. It’s totally plausible that they’re looking for them as a way to finally win the Skrull/Kree war. This wouldn’t be the first time another Marvel entity might have gone after the stones.
Whatever the specifics, there’s a reason Nick Fury was carrying around that page all these years. Captain Marvel will be our answer.
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2. It Could Reveal The Secret Skrull
In the last trailer for Captain Marvel, we finally got to see the Skrull do what they do best: Shape-change. With the inclusion of Skrulls into the Marvel Universe, fans are already speculating as to which characters, if any, have been one of the green creatures this whole time. Well, we might get our answer to that in Captain Marvel. If the Skrulls have been on earth for a while, as the trailers suggest, it makes sense that they’d infiltrate positions of power. They could be in the US government, working for S.H.I.E.L.D., or maybe even Nick Fury himself.
Okay, that might be a tad outlandish. But if Marvel can make a movie based on shrink powers, anything is possible.
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1. It'll Introduce The New Big Bad
Thanos has been Marvel’s number one baddie since the Avengers came out in 2012. Endgame will probably see him die (again, we’re sorry but it’s going to happen), so it only makes sense that another villain will step up to fill his role. Whoever that villain is, we’ll probably meet them in Captain Marvel. Having them show up right at the end of Endgame might be a little too “out of the blue” for Marvel’s taste. If the past 10 years have proven anything, it’s that they know how to slowly set up stories. It’s way more likely that we’ll get hints at the new big bad in Captain Marvel, especially if they have something to do with the Skrulls.
Or hey, the next big bad could be Dormammu. And would that be a bad thing?
Let us know how you think Captain Marvel will bring the two Avengers films together. Is there anything on this list we got wrong? Let us know in the comments below!
NEXT: Doctor Strange Concept Art Reveals a Different Version of Dormammu