Everything We Know About Avengers: Endgame -- Key Details Before Release
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Marvel's big movie is just a day away
There may have been a leak of Avengers: Endgame spoilers last week, but we're doing our best to avoid them--and you can too. But in the meantime, we're still interested in taking some deep dives into just what has been officially confirmed about Avengers: Endgame through the various press tours and trailer releases because spoilers are bad, but going in prepared is very good.
Naturally, there are no spoilers to be found here in this roundup--only the bits and pieces that have been intentionally released to the public, so never fear. This is your one-stop shop for gearing up as the countdown to the year's biggest movie drops into the single digits. We've got a rundown on some key facts we've learned about Iron Man, Captain America, Thanos, and the rest of the cast, as well as the fact that multiple endings were shot--though you shouldn't count on seeing any post-credits scenes in the final movie.
If you're still interested in powering through as many MCU movies as possible before you head to the theater, we've also got a list of just how to do it and which ones are actually worth the effort, just in case you don't have an uninterrupted 40-some hour stretch to devote to binge-watching everything before you see Endgame. Though, if you do, more power to you.
For those just wondering if the new movie is any good, you're in luck, because our Endgame review is now online. In it, Mike Rougeau writes, "But most of all Endgame is a love letter to the entire MCU--the whole thing. It's messy and confusing, and there's going to be a lot of discussion about whether the ending even makes sense--it basically breaks the rules set up throughout the entire movie leading up to it. But holy hell is it an emotional, fulfilling ride. I have no doubt we're going to spend the coming weeks picking and pulling it apart until we've over-analyzed every single aspect imaginable. But right now, in the aftermath, Avengers Endgame feels like a win."
It's right around the corner
This will come as a surprise to absolutely no one: April 26 is only days off. The wait is almost over.
It's extremely long
Final runtime for the movie clocks in at a whopping 3 hours and 2 minutes--the longest MCU movie ever. Consume your sodas carefully.
Even post-decimation the cast is stacked
We all have our guesses as to just who of the decimated heroes will return and how they'll do it, but even without them bolstering the numbers, the cast is legitimately star studded. Confirmed returning cast members are:
Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark
Chris Evans as Steve Rogers
Chris Hemsworth as Thor
Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff
Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner
Brie Larson as Carol Danvers
Don Cheadle as James Rhodes
Paul Rudd as Scott Lang
Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton
Danai Gurira as Okoye
Karen Gillan as Nebula
Bradley Cooper as (the voice of) Rocket Raccoon
Josh Brolin as Thanos
Captain America has a plan--and the plan involves teams
There's been no shortage of speculation as to just what the remaining Avengers plan to do to confront Thanos for round two--after all, the odds are pretty heavily stacked against them, and not just because their numbers have been literally cut in half. But, apparently, there's a plan--and that plan involves the remaining Avengers breaking into teams of some sort.
We know this thanks to the recently released clip which features a voice over from Steve Rogers explaining, "You know your teams. You know your mission--no mistakes, no do-overs." Pretty ominous, but, hey, at least it's something right?
Other clips have led us to believe that part of the plan might also involve the Avengers leaving Earth and heading for "the garden" which, as Nebula has explained, was Thanos's post-snap retirement plan all along.
Carol's been helping other planets
One of the biggest questions on our minds since the release of Captain Marvel has been "where has Carol been all this time?" But a recently released clip gave us an answer--she's been out there in the universe acting as a one-woman Avengers team for planets other than Earth.
Hopefully, we'll get some details and specifics about that soon because it sounds like she really had her hands full.
Tony and Nebula have been stuck in space for 22 days
We learned in a clip played for press before the junket in Beverly Hills that Tony and Nebula have been adrift on the Benatar for 22 days.
Tony and Nebula make it back to Earth somehow
We don't know how, but recent teasers have confirmed (as much as MCU teasers can confirm anything) that Tony and Nebula do, eventually, make it back to Earth despite their extremely dire circumstances stranded out in the Benatar in space.
Ant-Man has escaped the Quantum Realm
Another surprise return as confirmed by the trailers: Scott Lang has somehow made it out of the Quantum Realm, despite being ostensibly abandoned care of the snap in the Ant-Man & The Wasp post credits scene. How he was able to make it out is a total mystery, especially considering that Janet Van Dyne, the last known human to be lost there, was trapped for over a decade and then needed someone to come and pull her out. Maybe Scott had help?
Thanos "used the stones again"
The remaining Avengers are able to ping an energy signature that makes them think, in Nat's words, that Thanos "used the stones again." What this means, exactly, is a mystery--why did he use them? What for? It may be just his way of getting to his "retirement planet" the Garden, or maybe it's something else. Which, speaking of...
Thanos is in The Garden
Nebula explains that Thanos has gone to a place called "the Garden" which is where he's always planned to retire to after he accomplished his mission. This is likely the planet we saw at the end of Infinity War--but we don't know much else about it.
Steve and Tony reunite amicably
Steve and Tony haven't seen each other for a while, and the last time they did, things ended badly--but thanks to a clip in one of the trailers, we know that they meet back up again on fairly good terms. "Do you trust me?" "I do."
Multiple endings were shot
To prevent anyone--even the cast and crew--from getting too clear an idea of just where the movie would go, multiple different endings were shot, according to Mark Ruffalo.
Ruffalo also confirmed in the same interview that he was never given a full script, probably because he doesn't have a great track record with keeping secrets. If we had to guess, Tom Holland was probably also never given the full script, just, y'know, given his track record.
Hawkeye is Ronin now
Confirmed multiple times over by toy boxes and savvy fans alike, Clint Barton has put aside his Hawkeye identity in favor of a new one: the ninja-like Ronin. He also got a new haircut and a full sleeve tattoo in the process. No we don't know why either.
The Hulk is back, somehow
Thanks to the toy line and multiple posters, we know that Bruce Banner does somehow manage to turn back into the Hulk during Endgame, despite being totally unable to in Infinity War. This might be good news--but it also might be bad, considering Thor: Ragnarok left things on a pretty weird note for the Bruce/Hulk dynamic. Who knows what Hulk's return means for Bruce himself.