It feels like everyone on the internet has their own idea about just what will happen in Avengers: Endgame - including a rather disturbing one about Thanos and Ant-Man - so we thought we'd join in. Who will live, who will die, who will fall in love? Possible spoilers ahead, but only if it turns out we're psychic.
This is just the latest in a series of big questions we'll be interrogating our writers with, so share your answers and suggestions for topics with us on Twitter.
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Cap and Iron Man will die leaving room for the new Avengers
Everything we know about Avengers: Endgame is preparing us for the end. And yes, while we know it won’t be the end of the MCU full stop (just look at all the new Marvel movies we know are coming in Phase 4), that doesn’t mean it’s not going to be the end of something. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige has said it’ll be “a finale” like we’ve never seen before in the MCU, directors the Russos have said it’s “an end for some of these characters”, and the Endgame writers said it "is a different movie than you think it is". Basically, we know Endgame will probably undo most of the events of Infinity War, but my bet is only to give us something just as shocking and heartbreaking; the end of the Avengers.
How will Avengers: Endgame end? With Thanos defeated and the Snap reversed using the timey wimey ability of the Time Stone and Captain Marvel of course! But more importantly, it’ll see the end of two of the most iconic and central characters of the MCU so far - Captain America and Iron Man. It’s not a stretch to say that the MCU wouldn’t exist without these two superheroes (especially Iron Man whose origin story was the very first Marvel movie we ever got), but they can’t be at the center of things forever. There’s only so many stories you can tell with them, and if we want the MCU to continue it needs fresh characters and stories apart from these two heroes. Chris Evans has already been pretty open about Endgame being his last Marvel movie, and although Robert Downey Jr. is keeping quiet, we know he’s already been in more Marvel movies than he originally signed on for (they keep extending his contract!).
It definitely feels like the time is right for these two powerhouses of the MCU (and possibly more) to bow out, but how? Sacrificing themselves for the greater good? Maybe. Getting lost in another dimension/timeline? Probable. Just ‘retiring’? No way! Cap and Iron Man’s end has to be permanent (at least for now) to mean anything and both characters have proven time and time again that they can’t stand by when the world is in danger. That’s why the Endgame finale needs to either kill them off or trap them in a separate universe away from the MCU. While you cry over that, let me remind you that their departure leaves room for another group of Avengers to take their place. Perhaps the Young Avengers?! So, really Endgame isn’t the end, but the beginning of something new. Either way, it’s going to be an emotional ride so remember to bring tissues to the cinema! Lauren O’Callaghan
It's all going to come down to Captain Marvel
Okay, I'll admit it, I've already seen Captain Marvel twice and I'm now on the hunt for actually good, and more importantly subtle, merch so I can tout my allegiance in an (almost) dignified manner that's befitting of a 30-year-old. Because of that though, I am extra heavily invested in Avengers: Endgame and how it all plays out. Obviously, if you've seen Marvel's latest, you'll know that the Captain Marvel post-credits scenes have some serious implications for what's going to happen in Endgame. So my theory is that Captain Marvel is going to fix everything. It's already clear she's making friends with Thor, she's the most powerful of all the Avengers, and it looks like her connection to the Space Stone - she's literally powered by it after all - could be the solution to everything. From the post-credits sequence alone, it looks like Captain Marvel will turn up fairly quickly in Endgame, so now it's just down to how exactly she'll use her powers. Sam Loveridge
10 different Spider-Mans will team up to save the day
I have seen approximately *checks notes* 15% of the Marvel movies, and most of the Avengers franchise is in the other 85%, so my hypothesis may not be the most valuable. Nevertheless, I propose that 10 different versions of Spider-Man - no more, no less - from the various timelines featured in the games and comics will use whatever magic McGuffin drives these movies nowadays to assemble in our world and save the day in the next movie. Why? Because Spider-Man is my favorite superhero and I don't have much else to go on. I'm pretty sure Spider-Man played a role in one of the other movies, right? It could happen. Probably. Failing that, Avengers: Endgame will end with all of humanity complaining about a lack of rewarding content until the end of time, because that's how endgame always goes. Austin Wood
Tony Stark doesn't want to pilot Iron Man
Contrary to Thanos' plans, what actually happened when the mad titan snapped was the instant unification of every lifeform in the universe. Almost every lifeform. What we see following The Snap takes place deep within Tony Stark's psyche. Weighed down by his powerful ego and many psychological scars, Stark at first rejects lifeform totality. He misinterprets the other Avengers ascendance as death and retreats to the depths of space. Eons seemingly pass until Stark can stand the loneliness no longer. He realizes that now, for the first time in his life, he must choose not to hold himself apart. He must accept others into his life. Stark reappears on the surface of a placid sea, surrounded by all of the "fallen" Avengers and the rest of his friends as they applaud his decision and accept him into totality. Congratulations, Tony. Connor Sheridan
It'll end as though neither Infinity War or Endgame ever happened in the first place
Acting almost as a homage to the last decade of the MCU, our intrepid survivors will use Ant-Man's quantum machine to travel back in time to various key points across several Marvel movies, such as The Battle of New York and Guardians of the Galaxy's Xandar invasion. By manipulating events in a certain way, The Avengers will alter the course of time so that Thanos never even gets his hands on the Infinity Stones in the first place, thus rendering the events of both Endgame and Infinity War as mere alternate timelines that our heroes retroactively avoided. This would explain how chirpy Peter Parker seems to be in the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer since, as far as he's concerned, his fight with Thanos and subsequent dusting never even took place. Alex Avard
Cap dies, Tony dies, and we’re all proper sad because obviously
“We lost,” Cap announces during Endgame’s trailer. “All of us.” Now it’s the audience’s turn. More specifically, we’re in for the mother of pyrrhic victories: you can absolutely guarantee that a few high-profile Avengers are toast. Iron Man? Yeah, he’s got ‘noble sacrifice’ written all over him (especially with rumours that Pepper is pregnant - after all, the silver screen loves a ‘not getting to see your unborn child grow up’ gut-punch). Steve Rogers is equally done for. His arc has always been one of giving up everything for the greater good, so a valiant end here fits him like a glove. The pair of them will undoubtedly perish as friends as well, battling shoulder-to-shoulder against the odds. All while the Avengers theme swells in the background, because oh god the feels.
There’s presumably going to be a touching montage afterward, too. You know, the kind where everyone mourns the duo’s passing as sad piano music plays. Perhaps an inspired young girl who may or may not be Riri Williams (Iron Man’s successor in the comics) will take up tools to make her own armor. You can also bet your bottom dollar that Bucky is going to be left with Captain America’s shield. I mean, he has to adopt the mantle after all those teases from prior movies. That’d be a post-credits stinger and a half. Benjamin Abbott
It won’t...really
There will be no games, no ends, no games that end, and it certainly won’t be the end of the Avengers’ games. Yup, it’s time for a slightly-cynical, Marvel-fatigue-based entry, strap in. Of course, the film will literally end, but will it mark the end of the game for some of the biggest money-making films of recent times? Absolutely not. I predict there will be some nods to future entries and baddies (maybe even by not getting rid of Thanos completely), some indicators of expanding story arcs, and some clever narrative turns and character moves mixed in too - and all this will contribute to Endgame's ending in some way, shape or form. Maybe setting up the next installment that could be in such forms as ‘Avengers: Extra Time & Penalties’ or ‘Avengers: The Rematch - This Time it's Payback’, for this won't really be the endgame. They'll definitely get the gang back together.
Now, just so you don’t get me (totally) wrong, the Marvel films are largely great, my wife loves them and we go and see a lot of them, but they are relentless, providing an onslaught of superhero smacks to the senses. Every year. All year round. They are well-written, wholesome, and exciting films, but just stop pelting me with them. In the face. Without cessation. Rob Dwiar
