Marvel movies have a way of hiding things in plain sight and keeping the audience guessing with their mid/post-credits scenes and references to future films. Often there are instances when even the most avid fans tend to overlook easter eggs and facts that may be in plain sight.
Some of the exciting facts or deviations mentioned in the stories from the comic books have prompted several videos and articles to be published about easter eggs and hidden references. Here is a look at ten easter eggs fans most likely missed when watching the following Marvel movies for the first time.
10 Captain America’s Last Words To Bucky
Steve Rogers and Bucky go a long way back as far as their friendship is concerned. While saying their goodbyes in Avengers: Endgame, Steve says to Bucky, “Don’t do anything stupid until I get back.”
If fans go back to the first Captain America movie, this is the same phrase the pair said when they said their goodbyes.
9 Black Widow’s Ballet Shoes
In Avengers: Endgame, there is a shot of Black Widow sitting in her office. If fans pause the scene and look closely, they can see a pair of worn-out shoes used in ballet dancing kept near her table.
These shoes reference her background as a dancer before a series of events that turned her into an assassin.
8 Beta Ray Bill
In Thor: Ragnarok, Thor throws Mjölnir at his sister Hela, but she stops it before it breaks into pieces. Thor gains a new hammer called "Stormbreaker" which was used by the character Beta Ray Bill.
In the comics, Thor was sent to investigate a spaceship where he found Beta Ray Bill. The latter assumed Thor was a monster and responsible for the destruction caused to the ship. Beta Ray Bill picks up Mjölnir and hits Thor with it, and Thor eventually gets the Stormbreaker forged for Beta Ray Bill. This could be foreshadowing to the character making an appearance in the future.
7 Banner Shooting Himself With A Bullet
In the first Avengers movie, Banner tells the others he once tried to shoot himself, but the other guy spat it out, indicating he could not even commit suicide even when he was severely depressed.
This small fact is a reference to a deleted scene in the movie The Incredible Hulk, where the exact sequence happens.
6 Actual Footage Shot By Amateurs Included In The Movie
Before the press conference scene at the end of the first Iron Man movie, Tony Stark is seen speaking with Pepper Potts while reading a newspaper. A close look at the front cover shows the headline “Who Is The Iron Man” along with a blurred image of him in his suit.
This was taken from a video taken by some amateurs during the shooting of the film, which they had then posted online before the movie's release.
5 Future MCU Plans
At the end of Iron Man 2, Tony Stark and Nick Fury discusses the Avengers initiative. There is one scene where fans can see a world map in the background, with some locations marked.
With some research, one can figure out what these locations signify: the spot in Africa most likely denotes Wakanda, the New Mexico one was where Mjölnir was found, and the Greenland marker was where Captain America crashed the Skull’s ship.
4 Star Wars Easter Egg
It was revealed in an interview that every MCU Phase 2 film would have a character lose an arm. This is a reference to the Star Wars franchise, as the MCU appears to enjoy having characters' body parts severed. Among the people who have lost an arm have been: Tony Stark, Thor, and Groot.
There have been other characters who have lost their arms from heroes and villains alike, but that would take too long to list. However, it is definite that this is a reference to the Star Wars franchise.
3 The Scarecrow Armor Of Thanos
At the beginning of Avengers: Endgame, there is a scene where fans see Thanos’s armor on a pair of sticks, mimicking a scarecrow as he tends to the garden.
The armor shown is a direct reference to the Infinity Gauntlet comic books where it is shown several times.
2 The Mysterious Boy At Tony Stark’s Funeral
During the funeral scene, the camera is seen moving from character to character until it reaches a young boy. He is the boy Harley Keener whom Stark befriends in Iron Man 3.
Although the character was never mentioned after the movie, he finally makes an appearance while paying his respects to Tony Stark.
1 Avengers: Endgame Easter Egg
Although Avengers: Endgame is the first MCU movie without any mid or post-credits scene, there is a small easter egg for fans who stayed behind until the end of the credits.
There is a clunking metal sound that references the initial armor Tony Stark made during his escape in the first Iron Man movie. This was hailed as the perfect send-off to the years of Marvel movies, as well as Tony Stark, who is credited for beginning the Avengers.