Avengers: Endgame Writers Originally Had Another Way To Retrieve The Time Stone

While there are still plenty of questions that need answering when it comes to time travel – and the mechanics which govern it – most fans seemed to thoroughly enjoy Avengers: Endgame. The Russo Brothers’ magnum opus did a stellar job at wrapping up the events that played out in Infinity War, all while bringing together the franchise’s key players for one epic final showdown.

It looks like we’ll get a better understanding of how multiverses, time travel, and alternate realities all work in future films (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness seems to be going in this direction, for one), but until then, we’ll have to settle with what was shown off in Endgame. Speaking of which, it turns out the film’s screenwriters (Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely) came up with a handful of time travel set pieces which were eventually scrapped from the final cut.

As ComicBook.com notes, the two scribes initially envisioned a scene where the Avengers would have traveled to the Sanctum Sanctorum in order to retrieve the Time Stone. As those who’ve already seen Endgame will know, that particular gem was instead collected by Bruce Banner/Professor Hulk during a trip back to the Chitauri invasion of New York City.

Here’s what the writers had to say about the original plan, though:

“At one point, we had a different way of getting to the Time Stone which involved some characters breaking into (Doctor Strange’s) Sanctum Sanctorum and being pursued by all the weird stuff that happens to be trapped inside there,” said Markus. “It was totally off story and unnecessary and it got cut, but it was fun to write.”

Personally, we would’ve loved to have seen this scene, though it looks like the team didn’t even get a chance to film a rough cut of it. The thought of Hulk trying to make his way through the Sanctum Sanctorum all while being attacked and accosted by a myriad of magical artifacts seems pretty funny and brings to mind a bull in a china shop.

Needless to say, it looks like a lot of Avengers: Endgame ideas got left on the cutting room floor. At this point, we wouldn’t mind a full-length making-of documentary – hopefully one will arrive on Disney Plus at some point? Either way, we’ll be sure to keep you updated on any additional behind-the-scenes info as it comes our way.