Avengers: Infinity War will bring every superhero from the Marvel Cinematic Universe together in order to take on the ultimate threat in Thanos. He is dead-set on gathering the Infinity Stones in order to construct a gauntlet that can wipe out half of the universe with the snap of his fingers. Not only are the Avengers coming together to stop his invasion, they also must prevent him from putting together the most dangerous weapon in the universe. As the Guardians of the Galaxy can attest, there are billions of lives at stake on alien worlds all across the universe. Thanos needs to be stopped at all cost.

The question is, though, who will be the one to finally vanquish The Mad Titan? Thanos is incredibly powerful, so you would imagine it would take a lot to defeat him, but the MCU has proven that it can surprise us. Taking into account all the superheroes who are expected to appear in this film, and factoring in the comic book stories that may influence the events of the film, CBR looks into who could possibly defeat Thanos in the end. Some choices are obvious, while others are a little more surprising.

15 VISION’S SURPRISE ATTACK

Vision Paul Bettany Infinity War trailer 2

We know that Thanos is looking for the Infinity Stones, so that can’t mean anything good for the Vision. The fact that he has the Mind Stone embedded in his forehead means that he will be a major target of the Black Order. A previous trailer has shown the villains will rip the stone from his forehead at some point during the film, but we don’t know what that will mean for him.

Vision could definitely meet his end once the Mind Stone is no longer linked to him, or it could just hurt really, really badly. Maybe the villains don’t take him to be much of a threat after that, and his phasing abilities could prove useful in a surprise attack during the third act of the film. Could Vision get his revenge and take out Thanos in the end without him knowing what was coming?

14 HULK SMASHES THANOS

Hulk in Thor Ragnarok

Choosing the Hulk as the one to take out Thanos almost seems too obvious to take seriously. He’s probably the only one among the Avengers who can actually go toe-to-toe with the Mad Titan in terms of raw strength. Maybe Captain America can hold Thanos at bay for a few seconds, but it’s the Hulk who is going to be able to knock him down more than one time.

A brutal battle between the two could be how this all comes to an end. It would be a great way for the Hulk to redeem himself following the events of Age of Ultron, at least for the other Avengers who weren't around for Ragnarok. Outside of the battle for Wakanda, Bruce Banner has only been seen in his human form. It’s even believed that he will fight in the Hulkbuster armor. Will the Hulk even show up for the final battle?

13 I AM GROOT

Groot is clearly on some kind of wild journey. He has grown up since his time as Baby Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy 2, and will be Teen Groot in Infinity War. It has been said that he will form a bond with Thor over the course of the movie, going so far as to help create the Odinson’s weapon in the film. Could he end up playing a huge role in offing the Mad Titan in the end?

Given the fact that many believe Loki’s story is going to come to an end in Infinity War, it’s possible that Thor will launch an attack against Thanos in order to get revenge. The latest trailer showed the villain beating on Thor, but what happens when Groot sees his friend and mentor getting his butt kicked? One dramatic “I Am Groot” could bring it all to an end.

12 BLACK PANTHER STRIKES

It’s hard to say what kind of role Black Panther will have in this film, considering he has hardly been seen outside of the battle for Wakanda. T’Challa has not officially joined any Avengers team yet, as far as we can tell, so his only real concern could be the protection of Wakanda. Once the battle moves away from his home, it’s possible that he could take on a lesser role.

Then again, the big lesson of Black Panther was that they were no longer going to keep themselves hidden from the world. Perhaps part of that deal will be taking up the fight with the Avengers and helping to take down the enemy once and for all. Given T’Challa’s advanced abilities and access to Vibranium technology, he could be key to taking down Thanos in a fight.

11 LOKI’S NOBLE SACRIFICE

Loki with the Tesseract in Avengers: Infinity War
Loki with the Tesseract in Avengers: Infinity War

Everyone keeps saying that this will be Loki’s final appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He gives Thanos the Tesseract containing the Space Stone, and it allows the villain to travel wherever he wants. Many believe that this is where the villain will take out Loki once and for all, but what if we’re all wrong? What if he plays a huge role in taking him down in the end?

The latest trailer shows that the Black Order will hold Loki against his will. What if he is forced to work with them throughout the film, until he finally breaks free in the end. If this is indeed Tom Hiddleston’s final curtain call, it would be an amazing send-off to have Loki sacrifice himself to take out Thanos. It would make all the work Thor put in to redeem his brother to be worth it.

10 BLACK WIDOW GETS THE JOB DONE

Black Widow in Avengers: infinity War

Thanos is an incredibly powerful alien villain with the power to alter reality with a simple snap of his fingers. Black Widow is a very gifted normal person with no sense of superhuman abilities. It sounds laughable to suggest she would defeat Thanos, but crazier things have happened. She previously played an integral part in stopping the Chitauri invasion back in The Avengers. Natasha could step up again.

Despite all the good The Avengers have done in the MCU, the team has yet to kill a living, breathing main villain. Thanos is the type of bad guy who could do unspeakable damage to the universe if he were to get his hands on the completed Infinity Gauntlet. Left with no other options, the team might have to kill Thanos to stop him. Who would be more willing to take him out for the greater good than the Black Widow herself?

9 ANT-MAN STANDS TALL

Ant-Man-and-the-Wasp-Giant

Paul Rudd is expected to reprise his role as Scott Lang in Avengers: Infinity War, but so far we have yet to see him in any of the trailers or other marketing material. It’s almost as if he’s not going to play a very big part in the end. However, given the nature of his appearance in Civil War, it’s possible Ant-Man could make a very big surprise appearance near the end of the film.

Think about it: Ant-Man’s powers allow him to be anywhere he wants without anyone noticing. What if we’ve already seen him in the trailer, but we can’t see him? Picture a scene in the film where Thanos is about to use the Infinity Gauntlet to destroy everyone. Then suddenly Ant-Man makes his move, grows to an enormous size, and steals the weapon from the villain. Then he crushes him. The end.

8 SPIDER-MAN SHOCKS THANOS

Avengers: Infinity War

We’ve already seen Thanos fight Spider-Man in one of the Infinity War trailers. Peter Parker gets that new high-tech Iron Spider suit, and it would be amazing to see him take on the big bad with the fate of the universe on the line. Tony Stark has essentially crowned him as the future of the Avengers at this point, so it would be appropriate if Peter was the team’s last man standing.

Think about everything that Thanos has said so far, and how a teenager standing in his way of ultimate power would make the Mad Titan laugh. Then he sees that there’s more to Peter than he thought, and in the end, Thanos underestimates his opponent. Crowning Spider-Man as the hero who saved the universe would be a great setup for his next solo film.

7 DOCTOR STRANGE PROTECTS US ALL

Doctor Strange Avengers Infinity War Benedict Cumberbatch 1

As the defender of this mortal realm, Doctor Strange likely takes the defense of Earth against Thanos to be a very personal mission. As the keeper of the Eye of Agamotto and the Time Stone, he’s clearly going to be a target of the Black Order. However, the latest trailer already puts him in place to be the big hero who stops Thanos in his tracks.

His interaction with Spider-Man seems to suggest that the two of them will be off somewhere else, which could be late in the film. Strange no longer has the stone, but his amazing powers allow him to step in and banish Thanos to another dimension. There doesn’t seem to be plans for another solo film, so this could be Strange’s biggest move before he sacrifices himself for the greater good.

6 HAWKEYE’S BIG ROLE

Hawkeye Civil War

It would seem that the Marvel Cinematic Universe forgot all about Hawkeye yet again. Jeremy Renner is listed in the credits, but Clint is nowhere to be found. We’ve seen him filming in his Ronin gear on the set, so something is definitely up. But what’s the plan here? Considering Hawkeye is retired now, it would make sense that he doesn’t assemble with the rest, but there’s no way he would sit by and not guarantee the safety of his family.

The Filmmakers have stated that Hawkeye goes on his own journey and has a very important role in this film. Could this journey take him on a collision course with Thanos and the Black Order? He’s likely to show up somewhere to save everyone, but could he also bring the conflict to an end with a carefully placed arrow?

5 CAPTAIN AMERICA DEFIES THANOS

Chris Evans’ time as Captain America is coming to an end, but it’s a matter of debate how exactly they would bring it to a close. Could Thanos really kill him? It’s more likely that Marvel would want to send him out on a more positive note. It’s possible that he could be the one to take out Thanos, at the cost of his own life.

We all saw Captain America stand up to Thanos and fight back in the latest trailer. He’s likely the only character that could surprise the villain with his strength while also still feeling believable. He represents human optimism as a counterpoint to Thanos’ more cynical look at life, and why he wants to destroy everyone. What if these two take each other out in the end? It would set up his final appearance in Avengers 4 as more of a cameo.

4 THOR GETS REVENGE

Chris Hemsworth as Thor in Avengers: Infinity War

Everyone expects Thanos will take out Loki one and for all, so who is better equipped to stand up to Thanos than the God of Thunder himself? We know the two get into some kind of confrontation, and it’s possible Thanos is still too strong even for a god. Without Mjolnir to use, this may become a far more grueling hand-to-hand fight than we’ve seen before.

Thor seems to be on something of a journey here. He’s stranded out in space after his people are attacked, and he joined the Guardians of the Galaxy to get back to Earth. Wherever the final battle takes place, it’s likely that Thor’s journey will come to an end there. Maybe he’s a more obvious choice than most, but that might make him the best person for the job.

3 IRON MAN PLAYS THE HERO

Tony Stark was the first, so it makes sense that he would be the ultimate hero against the universe’s baddest dude of all time. Iron Man is clearly going through some emotional stuff in this film, seeing as how we see him worried and desperate in the face of Thanos’ impending attack. He even takes a beating by the man himself that is sure to leave a mark.

That being said, Iron Man has shown time and again that he will do whatever it takes to get the job done. After his fall from grace in Civil War, it would make sense for him to pick himself back up and be the hero he’s supposed to be. Even with a half-working Iron Man suit, it’s still possible that he has a hidden goody waiting to be deployed just for this kind of situation.

2 GAMORA STOPS HER FATHER

gamora in the mcu

The hero who is most likely to take out Thanos in Infinity War is Gamora, who was raised by the Mad Titan as something of a daughter. Out of anyone in the film, this conflict is likely to affect her the most personally. She might hate him, but there’s a reason we will be getting a glimpse at their relationship through flashback. At the end of the day, family is complicated, and this film is not going to take that lightly.

There will certainly come a time where Gamora truly has to make the decision to protect her friends or support her father. Talk is cheap until you act, so it would probably be a very dramatic moment when she embeds her sword right into the gut of Thanos.

1 THANOS CAN’T HANDLE IT

Thanos Josh Brolin Avengers Infinity WAr

Surprise, Thanos is actually going to end himself! It has been an ongoing theme in the comics that as powerful as he becomes, the Mad Titan will continue to lose because deep down he knows he is unworthy of the power he seeks. Perhaps the Avengers don’t actually end up beating Thanos. Maybe he actually wipes the floor with all of them and assembles the Infinity Gauntlet.

Then, when all hope seems lost, that key character flaw will shine through and prove to be too much for the villain. Maybe it’s his own quest for power that will be his undoing, and not the attack of any one superhero. The heroes would then be free to use the gauntlet to undo the mess that had been made before dismantling it and spreading the stones throughout the universe.