You’ve sat through countless hours of epic battles, fantastic plot twists, witty dialogue, space travel, superhuman powers, confusing scientific explanations, shiny suits (that always perfectly fit the perfect bodies of the superheroes who wear them) and a few romances thrown in for good measure. And don’t even get me started on the movie soundtracks.
Indeed, back in 2008 when you bought your “Iron Man” movie ticket and a big bucket of popcorn, you had no way of knowing that the entirety of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was waiting for you behind that silver screen.
And now the time has come.
The endgame.
The universe is in shambles, the Avengers are broken and bruised, everything is covered in a fine layer of dust and I am an emotional wreck. I can’t even trust the Russo Brothers’ trailers anymore to provide me with legitimate information that I can expect for the end of phase three. Even though providing content that is intentionally misleading to fans is a great way to ensure a spoiler-free premiere, it is also rude. But that is a discussion for another time.
Because fans can’t expect to gain much useful information from trailers, nor should they expect spoilers from their favorite chatty superheroes (cheers to Tom Holland and Mark Ruffalo, my two favorite people I wish I were friends with in real life), you’d better believe they will take it upon themselves to come up with their own theories for “Avengers: Endgame.”
I’ve compiled some of my favorite fan theories below. Some are plausible, some are not, but all are inventive and speak to the capability of a powerful and dedicated fan base that writes their own endings before the game is officially complete.
All contain spoilers — you have been warned!
1. The Snap didn’t actually kill people.
A common theory swirling around the internet right now is the idea that all of the MCU characters who disintegrated in the Snap didn’t actually die. Instead, Thanos transports them into another universe where all future MCU storylines will take place.
This hypothesis opens the door for all of the new heroes recently introduced to the MCU, allowing them to continue to have their own movies while also rapping up the end of an era for the original Avengers gang. There is some speculation that the Quantum Realm connects the two universes, allowing both Ant-Man and Captain Marvel to cross over into the new universe and continue to exist among the newest generation of heroes.
2. This other universe could be accessible via Goose.
It was revealed in “Captain Marvel” that Goose, the adorable and unassuming orange tabby cat, is actually a Flerken, a powerful alien creature who just so happens to look like a cat and contains a mouthful of tentacles and teeth.
Flerken also have a pocket dimension in their mouths, which allows them to store just about anything inside (a Tesseract, for example … or one of multiple dimensions that exist in the multiverse). Flerken can also teleport, a nifty feature in any household pet.
3. Iron Man sacrifices himself to save everyone.
While it seems very much in character for Captain America to be the one to lay down his life for his friends, allowing Iron Man to fight back and ultimately save the day seems like an unlikely route for “Avengers: Endgame” to take.
Chris Evans has been very public about the end of his time with the Avengers. With their track record of misleading information and working hard to keep their projects a secret, the Russo Brothers are probably scattering breadcrumbs down an incorrect path for fans.
4. Time travel can reverse the Snap.
I hope not! While there will most likely be some form of time travel in “Avengers: Endgame” thanks to the probable use of the Quantum Realm and its relationship to the space-time continuum, going back in time and preventing the Snap from happening by collecting the stones before Thanos seems like a bit of a cheap cop-out as the end to such an epic storyline.
Also, if my ugly tears at Spiderman’s death were all in vain, I will be very upset.
5. Thanos has ulterior motives.
In the comics, Thanos makes half the universe disappear in an attempt to woo Lady Death, a character that has yet to appear in the MCU.
Some fan theories are guessing that she will be a character in “Avengers: Endgame,” and this is justified by the reasoning that Thanos would have needed more motivation to zap half of all living things than simply a lack of resources. Why would he be bothered if Earth ran out of resources for everyone?
6. Is Thanos redeemable?
The most terrifying and intriguing part of Thanos’ character arc in “Infinity War” was his sincerity. He truly believed that his decision to rid the universe of half of all life was the best decision for everyone. Thanos didn’t do it out of ambition or personal gain. He even (maybe) killed his own daughter to achieve this goal.
Despite this, though, is it possible that Thanos could redeem himself? Some fan theories think Thanos might not only see the error of his ways, but team up with the Avengers to repair all of his damage. The name Kronos has been thrown around in one theory, insinuating that another villain may be lurking in the shadows.
All intentional misdirection aside, there is something invigorating about analyzing film clips and movie trailers, picking apart scenes for hidden secrets and speculating what might be the outcome of an epic film saga that has captured the hearts of millions across the world.
Of course, the tweaked “Avengers: Endgame” trailer material will probably lead you down rabbit holes instead of toward the pot of gold, and with the newest trailer released on April 2, there is even more material to pour over as fans count down the days until opening night.
You’d better get your tickets quickly; websites like Fandango, Atom Tickets and AMC Theatres have already crashed due to high traffic with people flocking to pre-order tickets.
