UPDATE: These photos have been removed. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.
Let it be known that Avengers 4 is not your typical Marvel film.
On paper, it’s the culmination of a 10-year franchise that began life with Jon Favreau’s Iron Man all the way back in 2008, while Kevin Feige has also promised a conclusive finale to the current iteration of the MCU, before Peter Parker and the last remaining Avengers pick up the pieces and start anew.
By that point, the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be unrecognizable, and it’s this impending seachange that has led many to conclude that Avengers 4 will incorporate elements of time travel and even alternate dimensions into its super-sized story. And stick with us, because there’s now some evidence that will no doubt add fuel to the fire.
Thanks to Just Jared, today brings forth a fresh gallery of set photos featuring Captain America (Chris Evans), a dressed down Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Ant-Man (Paul Rudd). There’s a lot to unpack here, so let’s begin at the start.
First and foremost, the clean-shaven Captain America is sporting his original suit from The Avengers, while the mere presence of Hulk and Iron Man indicates that this scene is set against the Battle of New York…or is it? All four actors are covered in white dots, signaling that Joe and Anthony Russo are about to employ some motion capture in post-production. Either that, or they’re merely being used to enhance CGI.
Chances are Avengers 4 will provide Thanos with a fully-powered Infinity Gauntlet at one point or another, and in the name of balancing the universe, there’s a good chance Marvel’s Mad Titan plans to forge a new timeline in which Ant-Man was present at the Battle of New York and Tony Stark wound up joining S.H.I.E.L.D. – notice how there’s no sign of an arc reactor in RDJ’s chest.
Finally, all four heroes are equipped with a peculiar device on their respective wrists, which is either a bleeding-edge product from Stark or another prop that will later be swapped out in post. We’re inclined to believe it’s the former, as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes will need some form of physic-defying mechanism if they’re really to journey back in time.
So many questions, so few answers. Expect Avengers 4 to shoot into theaters on May 3rd, 2019, exactly one year after the launch of Infinity War.
