Where Does The MCU Go After Avengers: Infinity War?

Avengers 4

If Joe and Anthony Russo’s recent event movie was accompanied by the tagline, “It all leads to this,” then its sequel could just as well be heralded by the comment, “This is where the rubber hits the road,” as this is the movie that wraps up Phase Three and sends the narrative careening headlong into Phase Four. For example, those who pay very close attention to these things will already know the identity of at least one major player that will be bowing out for good during the course of this installment.

And this is really the question surrounding the movie – who will ultimately survive? Avengers: Infinity War saw Thanos seemingly achieve his goal by blinking half of the life of the universe out of existence. In what’s now a legendarily difficult sequence to watch, an upsettingly large number of beloved heroes simply dissolve before our very eyes. The scene inspires a great deal of disbelief, not least because Disney’s insistence on announcing its future film projects far in advance of production means that we already know some of these dusted characters will be back on screen soon enough – so a resolution is clearly coming.

Before we proceed any further, though, let’s take a look at that leaked plot summary for Avengers 4 which surfaced a while back:

“A culmination of 22 interconnected films the fourth installment of the Avengers saga will draw audiences to witness the turning point of this epic journey. Our beloved heroes will truly understand how fragile this reality is and the sacrifices that must be made to uphold it.”

While Infinity War explored the idea of personal sacrifice and the nature of ‘the greater good’ in far more depth than any other MCU movie has before, it seems that the story’s resolution will go further in its demand for our heroes to put their lives where their intentions are.

But, it’s the reference to “how fragile this reality is,” that’s the most intriguing part of the synopsis. Highlighting the fragility of this reality would suggest that there’s a far less fragile alternative – something that would tie directly into the work of Doctor Strange in Infinity War. He purposefully checks every possible future outcome of the conflict with Thanos, and assures Tony Stark that the plan they eventually enact is the one that will lead to them ultimately saving the day. So, when Thanos seems to win, it appears that Strange is conceding that a triumphant Mad Titan is the best possible result for which they can hope. However, it’s eminently possible that Thanos hasn’t won at all, and that Doctor Strange is playing the long game.

Firstly – and this is entirely speculation at this point – we see these heroes dissolve and assume that means they no longer exist – having been ‘blinked out of existence.’ But, Thanos is in uncharted territory here, undertaking an action that nobody else ever has, and his gauntlet does include both the time and reality stones. So, could it be that our dissolving heroes have actually been deposited in a different reality? Could it be that “this reality” is fragile, because it contains a Thanos who’s in possession of the Infinity Gauntlet – but that other realities are less fragile, and this is where many of our Avengers are now assembling? Is this the reassuring end result that Doctor Strange saw, before the whole thing span out of control?

It must be something along those lines because, after this movie resolves that tale, we’re heading into Phase Four with Spider-Man: Homecoming 2, which must surely star Peter Parker himself, right?