9 Things You May Not Know About Avengers: Infinity War

It seemed like the time would never come, but the granddaddy of all Marvel events is happening next year. Yes, Earth's Mightiest Heroes will finally take on the Mad Titan, Thanos, in Avengers: Infinity War. In what's shaping up to be Marvel's most expensive production to date and one that features over 60 characters, this film looks set to be every comic book fan's dream come to life. Heck, it might even end up being every movie fan's dream in the flesh. Naturally, we're keeping our eyes closely on things and so much info has already leaked out about what we can expect from this ensemble affair. It's a little difficult to keep track of everything though, since quite often rumors run as facts and there's too much confusion around it all. Being your one-stop site for all things movie-related, then, we've identified the important things you should know about Avengers: Infinity War, so consider this your own personal pocket guide to the superhero extravaganza. If we've missed a major point or there's something else you'd like to add, please do drop us a comment with your thoughts. With that out of the way, sound Alan Silvestri's music and take hold of Mjolnir (because you're all worthy), as we look at everything we know about Avengers: Infinity War so far. A Major Avenger Is Going To Die Well, this is no shocker. Considering the magnitude of the event, it's only natural that a major character is due to meet his/her maker to solidify the meaning and impact of this movie. If you believe Mark Ruffalo, in fact, it's likely to be more than one or two Avengers and could actually be all of them. While we don't think the Russos will pull a Game of Thrones and murder everyone here, there are a few contracts due to expire - and we wouldn't be surprised if it's Captain America or Iron Man that meet their fate. Both have had major roles in the MCU, so it's possible they could be passing on the baton to someone else now. That said, it'll be interesting to see if Marvel sticks with these deaths, since killing off a major Avenger will also mean less toy sales and guaranteed blockbuster hits in the future. Will they be brave enough to risk it? Time will tell. Mjolnir Is Back One of the key moments (and the most striking) of Thor: Ragnarok's trailer was Hela destroying the God of Thunder's beloved hammer, Mjolnir (yes, we also saw all the angry girlfriend memes poking fun at this). Logically, such a big statement made us wonder if Thor would be hammer-less when Avengers: Infinity War rolls around in 2018. Well, that doesn't seem to be the case here, since a behind-the-scenes photo shows one of the Russos holding the fabled hammer; thereby confirming its return. Additionally, the film's concept art displays Thor wielding the hammer next to Rocket Racoon, so surely it must mean it'll be part of the proceedings. Taking the above into consideration, you can rest easy, folks, because Mjolnir will make a comeback (maybe even in Thor: Ragnarok). Suffice it to say, it'll be hammer time for the God of Thunder and the Avengers. The Guardians Of The Galaxy Will Be Four Years Older While the Marvel timelines have been rather easy to follow until now, things went a bit haywire in Spider-Man: Homecoming and Thor: Ragnarok and there's quite a bit of confusion as to where everyone fits in the upcoming Avengers film. So, in an effort to keep things simple, we're going to take it straight from the horse's mouth here. The horse, in this instance, being Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn - even though he's a lovely man and looks nothing like a member of the Equus caballus family. Speaking about how the Guardians will be a part of the Russo brothers' film, Gunn said the characters will have experienced a four-year gap between the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Avengers: Infinity War. Hopefully, Teenage Groot will be going through his Metallica and Black Sabbath phase now as well. Speaking of rock and metal, maybe Tony Stark can dust off some of the AC/DC tunes from Iron Man 2's soundtrack and help get Groot into some real killer music, too. Spider-Man Will Wear A New Suit If you've seen Spider-Man: Homecoming already, you're aware of the snazzy suit that Tony Stark offered Peter Parker at the end of the movie. While he didn't take it, we can tell you now that he will don it at some point in Avengers: Infinity War. How do we know? Because the Comic-Con trailer showed it in all its glory (and boy, did it look spectacular). Peter will be in fresh, new threads as he battles the forces of Thanos alongside his new buds in the Avengers. The suit isn't quite the "Iron Spider" costume from Mark Millar and Steve McNiven's Civil War event, but it's certainly close enough and translates absolutely incredibly to the screen. Whether it'll be a permanent feature of the MCU's Spider-Man or just a once-off thing, only time will tell. Nonetheless, color us intrigued to see what this new suit is capable of doing. The Film Will Be Released Earlier To The Overseas Market Much like most of the Marvel films, Avengers: Infinity War will be released earlier in the UK - April 25, 2018 - than the US, which will only receive it on May 4, 2018. But why does Marvel do this? According to their head honcho, Kevin Feige, it all came about as an experiment when Iron Man 2 and Thor were released back in 2010 and 2011 respectively. Basically, Marvel realized that several countries observed holidays at the end of April; therefore, making it advantageous for films to drop during the holiday period when people generally flock to the cinema. The move seemed to work and bolstered the sales figures, so the company continued the trend from that point forward. Additionally, Feige believes that this overseas-first model aids the U.S. market since it helps build up hype and word of mouth, as well as gain worldwide box-office momentum. While there's certainly value in doing this, it must be horrendous for the people who suffer from FOMO like us. Also, it sucks when films get leaked onto the torrents super early because of stuff like this. A Lot Of Filming Took Place In Scotland While principal photography kicked off at Pinewood Atlanta Studios in Fayette Country, Georgia, in January 2017, the production soon moved to Scotland in February. The locations chosen for the shoots were situated in Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the Scottish Highlands. At the moment, it's unclear what the significance of the locations to the film's plot is; however, it has been speculated that they could be the setting of an attack by the Children of Thanos on the team or even as stand-ins for American cities. If so, there's no doubt that the Scottish landscape will serve as an eye-catching backdrop for the battle of all battles. According to the Scottish paper Daily Record, the Avengers cast will be back in Edinburgh and Glasgow next year for more shooting as well. Considering the upcoming film is due for release in April/May 2018, this visit will most likely be for part two of Avengers: Infinity War. The VFX Company That Did Beauty And The Beast Is Involved With a film of this magnitude, you can't mess around with the visual effects. If it's meant to be the spectacle we anticipate it to be, nothing less than a 110% is expected. Hence the British company Framestore coming onboard to provide the VFX for Avengers: Infinity War. If you're unfamiliar with Framestore, their most recent projects have included the likes of Beauty and the Beast, Alien: Covenant, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Doctor Strange, and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. And we think we can all agree that none of those movies looked cheap or bland, right? Considering they have a solid history with Marvel films, and worked on Avengers: Age of Ultron, it's safe to say that the pic's visual effects are in good hands here. Frankly, we can't wait to see what they do with the movie. Hulk Won't Die How do we know this? Because Mark Ruffalo confirmed back in 2015 that he was still signed on for another four films. Considering he didn't appear in Captain America: Civil War, that means he's still got a long way to go in the MCU. Also, with the rights still being a sticky issue between Universal and Marvel, it's unlikely that the latter will want to end their version of the Hulk and open the door for Universal to do their own thing. Quite frankly, it's looking more probable that Marvel will manage to negotiate the rights for Hulk back than anything else at the moment. While Avengers: Infinity War will see casualties, you can rest assured that our favorite angry, green guy will still be around for a long time. In fact, we'd bank a lot of money on it. Thanos Will Be This Generation's "Darth Vader" According to Joe Russo, one half of the Avengers: Infinity War directing team, he has high expectations for the antagonist Thanos, hoping he'll be remembered as one of the greatest movie villains of all time. Speaking to ComicBook.com at Comic-Con International: San Diego, Russo said: “The stakes are incredibly high. I wanted to turn Thanos into Darth Vader for a new generation. He’s an incredibly intense character. Sociopathic. He takes no prisoners. I think the audience needs to be prepared when they go see these movies.” Those are some mighty big shoes to fill, but the signs of the Mad Titan's impact do appear to look promising. Much like Darth Vader's gradual build-up, Thanos has been lurking, ominously, in the background and now it's his time to shine. Whether he'll be mentioned in the same breath as Vader in the future, though, remains to be seen.