In case you’ve forgotten, Thanos kills a lot of people in Avengers: Infinity War – as in, probably more than almost any other character in cinema history. But while the Marvel actioner is bookended by sequences of the Mad Titan taking numerous lives, for the bulk of the film, the intergalactic despot keeps his hands relatively clean in this respect, with Gamora’s sacrifice being the major exception.
The point from which Thanos more or less refrains from killing until the film’s genocidal climax can be identified as the aftermath of the villain’s attack on Thor’s spaceship, in which half the Asgardians on board are killed and the tyrant attains the coveted Space Stone. It’s also after this sequence that Thanos refrains from using most of his armor, save for his increasingly bejeweled Infinity Gauntlet – which turns out to be practically all he needs anyway.
In the audio commentary track for the film’s new home video release, co-director Joe Russo explains how Thanos’ choice to lay down his armor indicates a newfound confidence in the character, who no longer needs to slaughter his enemies in order to reach his goal.
“It’s interesting because as Thanos moves forward in the film from this moment, once he disposes of his armor, he almost becomes a holy warrior where he doesn’t spend a lot of energy intentionally trying to murder people, unless they’re in some way a threat to his agenda.”
Russo goes on to single out Tony Stark as one character that Thanos does perceive as a threat, likely due in part to the crucial role that Iron Man played in foiling the purple tyrant’s plans in 2012’s The Avengers.
“But almost no one ends up being a threat to the agenda except for Tony, who I think feels he has this sort of existential connection to Thanos. It’s the one moment where he is actively…since brutally murdering Loki for disobedience, where he actively is going to murder someone for standing in his way. Of course he sacrifices Gamora, but that is to obtain the Soul Stone.”
Nonetheless, while Thanos passes up many opportunities to slay some foes while on his quest for the Infinity Stones, he makes up for the lack of kills and then some at the climax of Avengers: Infinity War. And should you wish to revisit the delayed carnage, the film is now available on Digital HD and is coming to 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray and DVD on August 14th.
