With
Avengers: Endgame now in theaters, The Infinity Saga has reached its end...right? Perhaps not. Yesterday, Joe and Anthony Russo attended a fan Q&A session in which they were asked a number of questions about the latest Marvel Studios movie.
Chief among them was Thanos' decision to use the Infinity Stones to destroy the Infinity Stones. After all, The Ancient One tells Bruce Banner that they're essential to the flow of time, so how is he able to get rid of them without completely destroying the universe as we know it? Well, it sounds like they may not be gone after all.
According to one
Redditor who was in attendance, they told fans that
"Thanos only reduced the stones to the atomic level. The stones are still present in the universe."
That's a game-changing piece of information, and while it doesn't necessarily mean the Infinity Stones will come back into play (they would, after all, be pretty hard to find) their continued existence surely leaves the door open to more stories and Marvel Studios could easily revisit their importance down the line with any number of villains, including those from the
X-Men and
Fantastic Four franchises.
Who knows, perhaps the Stones been atomised will lead to the emergence of mutants and the type of cosmic rays which turn a certain family into something a little more...fantastic?
Hit the "View List" button to take a look at how much screentime
each of the lead heroes receive in Avengers: Endgame!
Okoye - 6 Minutes
Well, guess now we know why Danai Gurira didn't get a credit on
Avengers: Endgame's poster. The actress didn't get much time to shine in the movie, but we do learn that she's seemingly become an Avenger when she's shown working alongside Black Widow five years in the future.
The
Black Panther supporting character also gets quite a few moments to shine throughout the final battle, particularly when she skewers Corvus Glaive on her trademark spear.
Wong - 6 Minutes
I'm a little confused by this one as I'm pretty sure Wong only had a single line in the final battle when he was reunited with Doctor Strange, but he definitely made an impact during that sequence.
Honestly, it was just a shame we didn't get to see more of him essentially serving as the new Sorcerer Supreme in Strange's absence, because how he adjusted to that would have been fun to witness.
Valkyrie - 8 Minutes
After Valkyrie was put on the backburner in
Avengers: Infinity War, the Russo Brothers finally confirmed that she survived the Snap in
Endgame when we paid a visit to New Asgard where she had settled along with the fat, drunk Thor and the remaining Asgardians.
She also got some cool moments in the final battle, flying on the back of her horse with Spider-Man in tow and then lining up with the rest of the MCU's female heroes. Valkyrie was also present for a goodbye to Thor as he appoints her the new ruler of Asgard.
Captain Marvel - 15 Minutes
Perhaps the biggest surprise in
Avengers: Endgame is the fact Captain Marvel plays such a small role. By the time the movie starts, Earth's Mightiest Heroes have already gotten to know her and while she's there for Thanos' beheading at Thor's hands, she only briefly pops up for that meeting with Black Widow before making a surprise return in the final battle.
There are a lot of amazing moments there, though, including her not flinching when Thanos headbutts her! Ultimately, something tells me the Russo Brothers put her to one side not only to keep the focus on the original six Avengers, but because her overpowered nature would have made things a little too easy for the team as they travelled back through time.
Black Widow - 33 Minutes
Considering the fact that
Avengers: Endgame serves as Black Widow's farewell (in the present day, at least), you'd think she would have received a little more screentime, but her 33 minutes are well-used and she makes a lasting impact over the course of this movie.
Marvel Studios does a great job of showing what sort of impact the Snap had on Natasha, and by the time she chooses to make that sacrifice on Vormir, it's a moment that feels earned.
War Machine - 35 Minutes
War Machine has always been a secondary player in the MCU (even in the
Iron Man franchise) so it's nice to see him receive a little more screentime in
Avengers: Endgame.
His mission to Morag with Nebula is a lot of fun, and it's a shame that his badass new armour is introduced at such a late stage because seeing that in action would have been awesome. Despite that, Rhodey gets a few chances to steal the show and, for the first ever, I'm excited to see where things go next for the character.
Rocket - 36 Minutes
The only surviving member of the Guardians of the Galaxy, Rocket is given an unexpectedly large role in
Avengers: Endgame but it was the right decision by the Russo Brothers. I'm a little surprised his knowledge of outer space and Thanos didn't come into play a bit more, but giving Thor a new ally was smart and seeing him interact with the likes of Captain America and Iron Man was awesome.
I guess he's officially an Avenger now, too, so here's hoping that comes into play down the line too.
Hawkeye - 37 Minutes
After missing out on a role in Avengers: Infinity War, Hawkeye is given a lot of screentime in this movie.
He kicks things off when we get to see the impact of the Snap on the hero's family, while his return to action as Ronin will definitely be appreciated by comic book fans. From there, he gets quite a lot to do, and my only complaint is that he didn't get to put that sword to use throughout the final battle. His role escaping with the Infinity Gauntlet was obviously extremely important, though.
Ant-Man - 38 Minutes
Scott Lang's return from the Quantum Realm is what kicks off the mission that sees Earth's Mightiest Heroes travel through time, and he serves as a great conduit for the audience as we get to see the world five years after that unexpected time-jump.
My personal highlight? Seeing him transform into Giant-Man during the final battle and making his way through the battlefield where he helps out Spider-Man and Iron Man by trampling Cull Obsidian just as the villain is about to attack them.
The Hulk - 40 Minutes
Bruce Banner has a role to play during the first fifteen minutes when he dons the Hulkbuster armour in a bid to take the Infinity Stones from Thanos. However, he really shines as Smart Hulk (a.k.a. Professor Hulk) and is perhaps the funniest character in the entire movie.
We do see a little more of Ruffalo during his conversation with The Ancient One, and the Russo Brothers give him a huge moment when the Jade Giant uses the Infinity Gauntlet to bring everyone back to life. He may be injured during the final battle, but still kicks a lot of butt.
Nebula - 41 Minutes
If there's one notable issue throughout this list, it's that the movie's female characters clearly receive a lot less screentime than the male superheroes.
On the plus side, there's an awful lot of Nebula here (both in 2014 and 2019) and the Russo Brothers have done a solid job of giving James Gunn the opportunity to take the character to some exciting places when she returns in
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Thor - 45 Minutes
After that shocking opening featuring the God of Thunder chopping off the Mad Titan's head, we later meet up with a Thor who has a very different look. He's now an overweight drunkard and as weird as that is to see, it makes a lot of sense and is basically the MCU's version of the Unworthy Thor.
By the time the final battle arrives, he hasn't exactly been redeemed, but he does get a badass new look as a Viking warrior of sorts. Marvel Studios also makes the smart decision to have him join the Guardians of the Galaxy, a perfect place for this humorous take on the beloved character.
Iron Man - 1 Hour, 2 Minutes
We're used to Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man claiming the majority of the spotlight in Marvel movies, so it won't surprise you to learn that he's so close to the top of this list.
Sure, he's absent from that initial battle with Thanos and The Avengers crack on with their time-travel plan without him, but he spends a lot of time in the past (there are two versions of him at one point) and is instrumental in defeating Thanos. The moment he snaps his fingers is nothing short of epic, while his death will leave us all tearing up for years to come.
Captain America - 1 Hour, 6 Minutes
Yes, after being shortchanged in
Avengers: Infinity War, Captain America does indeed receive the most screentime in this movie.
It's only by a few minutes, but seeing as
Endgame also serves as a farewell for Chris Evans' Steve Rogers, it's appropriate that so much of the focus is placed on him. His trips through time are fun, while the moment he finally cries "Avengers Assemble!" will go down in history as one of the greatest moments in any superhero movie.
As for his final scene, that too is something truly special, and I'm glad that if this was the end for his Cap, Evans got the time to truly shine.