How Did Iron Man Die?

Iron Man was one of the most beloved characters on screen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since its inception in 2008.

Masterfully portrayed by Robert Downey Jr., the character took a leadership role for the majority of The Avengers films and become a father figure to many of the characters in the MCU. This growth for his character made it even more tragic when he was eventually died at the conclusion of Avengers: Endgame.

With such a large-scale action set-piece and all the fan service going on during its final scenes, Tony Stark’s death stood out as arguably the most shocking event in the film. But for those who haven’t seen it for themselves here is what went down.

How did Iron Man die?

Ultimately, Iron Man sacrifices his own life to save the inhabitants of Earth and stop Thanos and his army by using the Infinity Stones.

In the final act of Avengers: Endgame, Thanos has followed the Avengers back from the past where they set out to collect the Infinity Stones and use them to reverse the actions of the dead Thanos in the current timeline.

When Thanos from the past enters the current timeline, The Hulk has already used the gauntlet of Infinity Stones to bring back the population who were eliminated during the snap, but it dealt substantial damage to his body.

Aboard his mothership, Thanos rains down fire upon the Avengers headquarters starting what would be the film’s final battle. Eventually, Thanos gets hold of the gauntlet for himself and uses its power to fend off an army of the Avengers and other heroes from throughout the MCU.

In a last-ditch effort, Iron Man is able to snatch all the gems from Thanos’s gauntlet and put them on his own so he can snap away Thanos and his army for good. After saying his famous phrase “I am Iron Man” Tony Stark does this and successfully rids of Thanos for good, but at a cost.

While the Hulk was able to survive using the Infinity Stones thanks to his radioactive superpowers, Tony Stark wasn’t and is left paralyzed before eventually dying soon after.

Iron Man knew he had to make this ultimate sacrifice. Dr Strange had seen all possible outcomes for their war with Thanos told him that there was only a single outcome that they would emerge victorious in.

This on-screen death is one of the most tragic in the MCU and brought to a close the Infinity Saga and phase three of the MCU.