It appears as though some Avengers 4 plot points have been hiding in plain sight.
Over on Reddit, one curious Marvel fan has put forward a new theory which alludes to previous interviews involving Tom Holland and Benedict Cumberbatch – interviews that were conducted before Infinity War released back in April.
All of this is explained in great detail by YouTuber Emergency Awesome, but the general gist appears to be that Holland accidentally let slip that the Quantum Realm will be used as a plot device during Avengers 4, and that Doctor Strange will be connected to said netherworld in some shape or form.
That original quote from Holland is as follows:
He has the most difficult lines though. He has to talk about so much quantum realm stuff. I just have to talk about.. ‘yeah man, but that’s awesome’.
The timing of this interview is important, too; it actually took place before Ant-Man and the Wasp, meaning Holland is either referring to Avengers: Infinity War deleted scenes or, in the more likely scenario, a sequence from Avengers 4 in which Doctor Strange is talking about the Quantum Realm.
Toss in the very real possibility that Earth’s Mightiest Heroes may be visiting alternate timelines during Avengers 4, and there’s also a slim chance that Strange himself will be able to access the Quantum Realm as the war against Thanos begins to enter its final stages.
And then there’s this second tidbit involving Mark Ruffalo, whose Bruce Banner was among the few heroes left standing at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. Here he’s waxing lyrical about Hulk’s upcoming scenes with Rocket – another character marked safe after Marvel’s Snapture.
It’s a very funny relationship that the two of them have: First of all, it’s the biggest superhero and the smallest. Just keeping them in a frame together is a feat and hilarious in itself.
Perhaps we’re reading into things too much? Remember, Joe and Anthony Russo tend to distribute fake scripts in order to clamp down on spoilers, so there’s really no guarantee that the plot intel Ruffalo (and Holland!) is referring to has even made the cut for Avengers 4.
