Which Marvel Characters Are Missing From Avengers: Infinity War Teaser Trailer?

If you thought the cast of Captain America: Civil War was massive, wait until Avengers: Infinity War arrives next year. Virtually every character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (with the exception of the TV-based heroes and villains) has been either rumored or confirmed to appear in the blockbuster film, and it makes sense because it'll take all of their combined might to stop Thanos from gathering the Infinity Stones and ruling the universe.

The first teaser trailer for Infinity War packed a lot of information into its short runtime, so it's little surprise it neglected to show off every single MCU character featured in the film. What we have here is a case of some missing heroes, which makes us wonder, why are they missing? Is Marvel Studios simply playing coy by holding back footage, was there simply not enough time to debut them all, or are their absences a clue that they may not survive Thanos and his Black Order's invasion of Earth?

Ant-Man and the Wasp

The last we saw of Scott Lang aka Ant-Man, he was a prisoner aboard the Raft after being captured in Captain America: Civil War. Luckily for him, the film ended with Cap breaking into the Raft to free Lang, along with Falcon, Hawkeye and Scarlet Witch. Two of these heroes are in the Infinity War trailer (Scarlet Witch sharing a tender moment with a very much human-looking Vision, and Falcon fighting aliens in Wakanda alongside Cap), so where is Ant-Man? A joke can be made regarding Ant-Man's shrinking abilities keeping him from being noticed, but that seems unlikely.

In a fight of this magnitude, Ant-Man will probably want to enlarge himself to Giant-Man status, just like he did in the Civil War airport battle.

As for the Wasp, Hope van Dyne's absence is easily explained by the fact that she's simply not in the film due to Marvel opting to hold her big debut for her co-starring role in Ant-Man and the Wasp. She will, however, feature into the as-yet untitled fourth Avengers film.

Hawkeye

As we mentioned above, Hawkeye was also on the Raft during Cap's prison breakout, yet he's missing here as well. His status in Infinity War and Avengers 4 has generated a lot of fan theories, especially after set photos for Avengers 4 showed actor Jeremy Renner wearing a long black coat that covers the majority of his body. This all but confirms Clint Barton adopts the Ronin identity from the comics, where Barton traded his signature bow and arrows for twin katanas in the fallout from the Civil War comic book story arc.

One reason for Hawkeye's absence in the trailer could be connected to his family. If they die during Thanos' attack on Earth, perhaps Clint goes into mourning, only to rejoin the fight in Avengers 4.

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Pepper Potts

Tony Stark's on-again/off-again girlfriend Pepper Potts took a hiatus from the MCU after Iron Man 3. She was referenced during the dinner party sequence in Avengers: Age of Ultron, and confirmed as breaking up with Tony in Civil War after he unretired as Iron Man. One behind-the-scene theory held that Marvel Studios didn't want to pony up the money to bring Gwyneth Paltrow back, which made sense when you consider Robert Downey Jr.'s reduced role in the MCU.

However, Paltrow's Pepper Potts returned in the final moments of Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Tony used the opportunity to propose to her. The Tony/Pepper (Tepper?) relationship is back on, though wedding bells will have to wait until Thanos is dealt with -- if they both survive, that is.

Nick Fury/Maria Hill

S.H.I.E.L.D. may not play a factor in the MCU anymore, but that doesn't mean it's former director Nick Fury and his trusted agent Maria Hill still don't have a role to play in Infinity War. We can hear Fury's voice narrating the opening to the trailer as he delivers his reasoning for forming the Avengers. Bring together individuals with amazing abilities, to take on threats that were too great for one person.

Fury and Hill haven't been seen since Phase Three of the MCU kicked off, but Thanos invading Earth is the very reason you assemble your heroes. Even if they aren't on the front lines, the former S.H.I.E.L.D. agents can still provide valuable knowledge and guidance from afar... or off-screen.

Shuri

T'Challa's sister Shuri makes her debut in next year's Black Panther, and the film's trailers show her utilizing her high intellect to create a pair of high-tech wrist gauntlets. Another scene displays a pair of Black Panther outfits, possibly indicating one is for T'Challa and the other for Shuri. There was a time where she became the Black Panther in the comics, so it would make sense to explore that road in the MCU if not now, then at some point in the future.

Her absence from the teaser trailer is rather noticeable, considering one of the larger fights takes place in Wakanda. T'Challa and Okoye of the Dora Milaje are present, but no Shuri, though there is the question of who's powering that Hulkbuster Armor...

Valkyrie

Tessa Thompson was a breakout character in Thor: Ragnarok as the Asgardian warrior Valkyrie. She's proven to be so popular, most fans didn't notice she took over the supporting character role normally reserved for the Warriors Three and Sif.

Valkyrie joined Thor, Loki, Hulk and the rest of the Asgardian refugees on a spaceship looking for a new home after Asgard's destruction. The trailer has Loki in possession of the Tesseract (Space Stone), possibly handing it over to Thanos to place in his gauntlet, and a battered Thor meets the Guardians of the Galaxy out in space. Hopefully means the next trailer will contain some Valkyrie goodness.

Collector

The Elder of the Universe is known for "collecting" rare artifacts, whether they be obscure alien races or Infinity Stones. The Collector gave Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket and Groot a history lesson on the Infinity Stones in Guardians of the Galaxy, before his home was blasted to smithereens by the Power Stone. At the time, he had the Aether (Reality Stone) after Sif and Volstagg gave it to him in the Thor: The Dark World mid-credits scene. In the wake of the explosion, however, the status and location of the Reality Stone was left up in the air.

As a man who knows how to go about acquiring items, Thanos could look to him for information on finding the stones he needs. Of course, when Thanos comes calling, it can never end well.

All of the characters we mentioned have a decent chance of appearing in the first full trailer for Avengers: Infinity War once it's released. With this being a teaser trailer, screen time was at a premium, which could explain their absence. Or, another simpler reason may be the answer: Thanos kills them all.

Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Bettany, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders, Benedict Wong, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Holland and Anthony Mackie. The film opens May 4, 2018.