Say what you will about the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its half-baked villains – with Avengers: Infinity War, everything is about to change.
That’s because Joe and Anthony Russo are big believers in film death and the sense of finality it brings, so while it’s often the case that a comic book character can be resurrected via some contrived plot point – or deus ex machina, if we’re being all official – the Russo Brothers plan to kill off a number of big-name heroes with Infinity War. And once they’re gone, they’re gone for good.
Don’t believe us? Here’s what Joe Russo told BBC Radio Scotland (h/t ComicBook.com) during a candid interview:
My brother and I are firm believers that nothing has value unless it has an ending at some point and I do believe that this has been a really, really interesting experiment in filmmaking, what Marvel’s done over the last 10 years, is serialized storytelling through multiple franchises. That’s never been done before. And it’s important, I think, for this ‘book,’ if you want to call it that, that’s been written over these 19 films, to have an ending. To have final chapters. Infinity War is the final chapter. There will be…I’ll just say this, there will be surprises in the movie and I feel the audience should be prepared, going in, for surprises.
If there’s one cast member who is almost guaranteed to kick the bucket before Phase 4, it’s Thanos, particularly when you factor in that four-film arc for Josh Brolin’s Nathan Summers/Cable that’s about to kick off next month with the riotous Deadpool 2.
But for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Infinity War offers the chance to establish some new beginnings:
Without question, of course. There will be some endings and new beginnings. You look at the incredible success of Black Panther, and I think the universe will be very healthy moving forward, and it’s time for some new characters to shine.
For Marvel Studios, this is the passing of the torch – the moment when one generation of heroes is retired so that a new one may flourish. And we’ll be able to see the full effects of the Russos’ masterplan once Avengers: Infinity War tumbles off the production line on April 27th.
