Fan excitement for Avengers: Infinity War has reached crazy levels. It’s the culmination of a story that’s been building since The Avengers. Thanos will finally show up in search of the Infinity Stones and fight Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. There have been glimpses of the Mad Titan in previous films, but Infinity War is the first time the full extent of his powers will be on display. We’ve seen nearly all the Stones, with only the Soul Stone left to discover.
The release of the movie also coincides with the end of the contracts for many of the franchise’s original stars. Chris Evans has already announced that Avengers 4 will be his final turn as Captain America. While there has been no such confirmation from Robert Downey Jr., fans have begun to think he will also be bowing out of the universe sooner rather than later. The intersection of all these elements has caused rampant speculation about what fans can expect to see in the film. As Infinity War signals the beginning of a change for the MCU, it’s time to think about what the finale of the movie will mean for Phase Four of the franchise. That leads us to the craziest Avengers: Infinity War fan theories about the ending.
15 DEFEATING THANOS WILL RESET THE MCU
No one thinks The Avengers won’t be able to defeat Thanos. Obviously, they’ll win. It’s just a question of how high the cost will be. Behind the scenes contract talk has made it clear that some of our heroes will not be sticking around. With that in mind, it’s possible that Marvel won’t decide to kill off characters, but recast them instead.
The power of the Infinity Stones and Gauntlet is actually immeasurable.
We’re really not completely sure of what they’re capable of. Some fans have posited that when the dust clears after the huge battle, that inevitably leads to a huge explosion of the Reality Stone, Steve turns around and it’s not Chris Evans, it’s Chris Pine or Jensen Ackles. This solution seems the least likely to happen, but in comic books anything is possible.
14 COULSON SHOWS UP WITH HIS TEAM DURING THE BIG FIGHT
Yes, we know Kevin Feige has said several times that the TV and movie divisions are very separate and that’s why they can’t cross over. However, Coulson is the exception. He’s the one who brought the team together. He’s the connection from the TV world to the movies.
After five seasons of getting to know the team Phil has formed, there’s just no way they would stay out of it if Thanos is trying to take over the world. Plus, they just came from an awful future where the Earth is destroyed and are focused on keeping it from happening. They don’t know all the details, so they could think stopping Thanos is the key. Add in that Phil is dying, and we all know he considers fighting alongside the Avengers as the best way to go out.
13 ADAM WARLOCK APPEARS, STEALING THE SOUL STONE
Since the Soul Stone is the last one we haven’t seen yet, we can guess that a big chunk of the movie will be about trying to find said Stone. In the comics, it’s well-known that Adam Warlock and the Soul Stone are linked. Where’s there’s one, there’s usually the other.
He’s the only one who can seem to use it without breaking the universe.
Adam was introduced into the MCU at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, when Ayesha created him to atone for her failures versus the Guardians. If she were to send him after them and they’re on Earth, he might be drawn to the Soul Stone just as Thanos is about to get his hands on it. This would lead to the final battle of Avengers 4.
12 SCARLET WITCH BETRAYS THE TEAM AND JOINS THANOS
Despite her being on Team Cap during Civil War, there are plenty of fans who still don’t trust Wanda Maximoff. They feel like she hasn’t really gotten past her hatred of Tony Stark and The Avengers. Understandable as we never really got a full explanation for why she chose to join Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Comic fans also know that she routinely loses control of her powers, which leads to world altering consequences.
If Thanos kills The Vision to get the Mind Stone, perhaps Wanda goes into a revenge rage and turns on the team. Or maybe, the Mad Titan says he can bring back her brother if she cooperates and that’s all it takes. Either way, Wanda is a very powerful mutant that the Avengers should keep an eye on as all this plays out.
11 TONY IS REVEALED AS THE SOUL STONE
One of the craziest fan theories circulating the internet is that Tony is actually the Soul Stone. This goes back to Howard saying in Iron Man 2 that Tony was “his greatest creation.” At the time we all assumed it was just a father talking about his son. What if it wasn’t though?
We saw in Captain America: The First Avenger and Agent Carter that Howard Stark was a scientific genius well beyond his time.
As he was searching for Steve and the Tesseract in the ocean, he could’ve discovered something else Red Skull had on his plane; another powerful stone. This has become a big topic of discussion as various posters have featured Tony in an orange light, thought to be the same color as the Soul Stone.
10 HELA IS THE ACTUAL BIG BAD, NOT THANOS
With all his power, at his core Thanos is really just a guy trying to impress a girl. In the comics, his machinations are often for the benefit of Lady Death. The closest MCU equivalent would be Thor: Ragnarok’s Hela, Goddess of Death, who we didn’t actually see die at the end of the movie.
So, Thanos’ never ending quest to wipe out the galaxy could really just be about him wanting to look good in front of Hela. However, she doesn’t seem like the type of woman who will sit in the background and let him run everything. What if she’s just letting him think he’s running the show and has been waiting for her perfect moment to take over all along. Of course, as we all know, nothing is more powerful than Death.
9 CAP WIELDS MJOLNIR
First things first, Mjolnir isn’t really gone for good, it always comes back when Thor needs it most. The prophecy says only he who is worthy can wield its powers. The hilarious scene of all the Avengers trying to lift it in Age of Ultron set up Vision using it later.
However, there was that quick moment of Cap moving it just a little.
Of course he can use it, he’s Captain America. With Chris Evans’ time as Cap coming to an end, it’s time for the MCU to start giving fans the moments they’ve been waiting to see. Top of the list has to be him wielding Mjolnir. It would be a huge crowd reaction if just when all hope is lost, the hammer flies up and Cap uses it to hit Thanos.
8 EVERYONE IS KILLED BUT BROUGHT BACK IN AVENGERS 4
Comic book readers are well aware of Thanos’ power. We’ve seen pages and pages of his path of death and destruction. Less familiar mainstream fans may not understand how dangerous he really is. Some fans are wondering if Marvel might go the nuclear route of displaying the full power of the Mad Titan by having the film end with most of the team killed or badly injured. This would be a heartbreaking and shocking way to end the film, but it would set up an obscene level of anticipation for Avengers 4.
The thing is, everyone speculating about this possibility knows that it won’t stick. There’s no way Marvel would kill off all their franchise players without a way to bring them back. Whether it’s Doctor Strange or someone else who does it is anyone’s guess, but it’s unlikely they would traumatize their young fans with such a down cliffhanger.
7 A NEW HERO WILL BE INTRODUCED DURING THE FIGHT
With the universe entering Phase Four, it’s obvious there will need to be new heroes introduced. While many fans think Infinity War will be the perfect moment to bring in Nova, that may be too obvious. Perhaps filmmakers have their eyes set on someone else that we haven’t even considered. No one thought Guardians of the Galaxy would work so well.
With so many heroes to choose from, the newest members of the MCU could come from any corner of the universe.
If we had to guess, we would say it’s most likely to be someone connected to Captain Marvel or Spider-Man. Yes, it could be Nova, but Kevin Feige likes to do the unexpected, so if everyone thinks it’s one thing, it will probably be another. Sorry everyone hoping for X-Men or Fantastic Four, it’s way too soon for that to happen.
6 STEVE IS KILLED AND SAM BECOMES THE NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA
If we were taking bets on who dies, sadly Steve is at the top of that list. His sacrificial tendencies coupled with Chris Evans’ exit makes him the most likely candidate. It will be heartbreaking and there won’t be a dry eye in the house, but Steve’s loss doesn’t mean Captain America dies.
In the comics, others have taken on the mantle including Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson. In the MCU, Bucky is just beginning to recover from his time with HYDRA, so he’s not really ready to replace his best friend. He’s also found a new life in Wakanda, where he may want to stay in isolation. This means Sam is the better choice to become the new MCU Captain America. The others like and respect him, meaning they would be most comfortable with him manning the shield.
5 CAPTAIN MARVEL SHOWS UP DURING THE BATTLE
Carol Danvers is set to make her official MCU debut in Captain Marvel, which is scheduled for release in March 2019. However, there’s no way she would sit out a fight that literally has the fate of the galaxy at stake.
We’ve heard that she’s not set to appear in Infinity War, but that doesn’t mean she can’t show up for the final few seconds of the battle or during a post credits scene.
With her own standalone movie set to be a prequel taking place in the '90s, fans have wondered if Carol could pop up in Infinity War to establish where she’s at now. We’re not thinking of anything big, just a quick fly in to save someone. This would give viewers a point of reference for when they see Captain Marvel.
4 THE PUNISHER WILL MAKE A CAMEO APPEARANCE
We’ve already been told that none of Netflix’s Defenders are expected to appear in Infinity War, however, Frank Castle isn’t technically a Defender. Yes, it’s a loophole, but Marvel has used that trick before to lull us into a false sense of security. Following the opening of his series where he shot a bad guy from across the Texas/Mexico border, fans began wondering if we would see a similar scene on the big screen.
With rumors running rampant that there’s a scene that features more than 60 characters, it’s possible that Frank could pop up for a quick cameo as one of these heroes. He could save someone from an alien with one of his crazy long range shots and no one ever knows who pulled the trigger except the audience. Or maybe even get the final blow on Thanos? We'll keep dreaming.
3 TONY STARK BECOMES THE AI IN RHODEY’S SUIT
There’s been a lot of talk about the possible death of Steve Rogers in Infinity War, but what if the Avenger who sacrifices himself to save everyone is Tony. This particular theory comes from Kevin Smith on his "Fatman on Batman" podcast. He said that if Tony were going to die, he would like to see him become the new AI in the Iron Man suit.
It allows Robert Downey Jr. to continue in the MCU without the grind of carrying the franchise.
Though some fans have speculated that Shuri could become the MCU version of Riri Williams and take over for him, the obvious choice is Rhodey. When he thought he was dying in Iron Man 2, Tony even set things up so he would be next in line. Tony would still part of the team and Rhodey gets to be in the spotlight.
2 KILLMONGER RETURNS AND FIGHTS ALONGSIDE T’CHALLA
The Infinity Stones have the power to do many things, including bring back the dead. There’s been a lot of rumors that to fight off the heroes, Thanos will bring back the villains from all the previous movies as part of his army. This could possibly be part of that big 60 character scene.
If all the bad guys are coming back, there’s one that fans may be most excited to see, Black Panther’s Killmonger. When last we saw him, he and T’Challa were watching the sunset over Wakanda and he seemed to find some peace. If he comes back, he might want to help his cousin protect Wakanda from Thanos, not destroy it. Plus, one movie seems like a waste of Michael B. Jordan’s amazing performance.
1 SKRULLS APPEAR SETTING UP SECRET INVASION
If Infinity War and Avengers 4 signal the end of the universe’s first overarching story, this means they would also set up the next major event. Since we’ve already seen the film version of Civil War, and we’re a long way off from seeing a possible mutant war, the new plot might be Secret Invasion.
There are many fans who believe that the studio has already been planning for this and several characters that we have previously met are actually skrulls lying in wait.
If Thanos does enough damage, the Earth would be very vulnerable to an invasion. The reveal that Maria Hill or even Hawkeye has been a skrull all along would make for a game changing post credits scene that leads directly into Captain Marvel.