AVENGERS Helmer Joss Whedon Admits He Didn't Know What To Do With Thanos; Praises INFINITY WAR Directors

AVENGERS Helmer Joss Whedon Admits He Didn't Know What To Do With Thanos; Praises INFINITY WAR Directors

Joss Whedon launched the Avengers franchise with his 2012 film and introduced the villain Thanos, but recent comments from the director reveal he didn't map out the Titan's future before departing the MCU.

By VHernandez - Jul 23, 2018 11:07 AM EST
Filed Under: Avengers: Infinity War
Joss Whedon is no longer involved in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he did provide them with one of its biggest films with 2012's Avengers. And while his follow up movie, Avengers: Age of Ultron, isn't as acclaimed as the first, the events in that film would impact future installments in the MCU.

Still, despite having a huge role in the earlier Marvel phases, recent statements make it clear Whedon didn't have everything mapped out, as he admits he "kind of hung [Thanos] out to dry." The director then went on to explain that he didn't have a clear plan for the Mad Titan after Age of Ultron: 


“I love Thanos. I love his apocalyptic vision, his love affair with death. I love his power. But, I don’t really understand it. He’s had a lot of power, and he was cool in the comics. And I’m like, Thanos is the ultimate Marvel villain! And then I was like, I don’t actually know what I would do with Thanos. So, I liked what [the Russo brothers] did so much, and I thought Josh Brolin killed it. And they did an amazing job of keeping that performance on-screen. But it wasn’t like I was like, here’s a set of directions. I was like, I’m gonna get through Ultron, nap for four years, and then I’ll come to the premiere. Which I did! It was like, this is so cool!”

So, while he wasn't the one to bring Thanos to the forefront, it sounds like Whedon wanted the Titan to be in love with Death like the comic version. That said, the director revealed he was pleased with the changes the Russo Brothers made to Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.

“I thought they did what they needed to do. [Thanos falling in love with Death is] not a concept that will necessarily translate," Whedon explained to IGN. "It’s sometimes also an easy out for a villain. To say, I love destruction! No, really, I’m in love with it. And yet, you’re still just a nihilist. Whereas they gave him an actual perspective and made him feel righteous to himself, which is always a better idea. So I liked what they did very much.


In all, these comments from Whedon reveal a bit more about how much he had planned for Earth's Mightiest Heroes beyond the sequel and may give some more insight into why many felt the post-credits scene in Age of Ultron was out of place.
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ODanil
ODanil - 7/23/2018, 11:07 AM
Age of Ultron is SO underrated it aches me.
Tonic24k
Tonic24k - 7/23/2018, 11:09 AM
@ODanil - Agreed. Not sure why some folks thought it underdelivered. It's top 5 in the MCU for me. And well above the first Avengers.
HeavyMetal4Life
HeavyMetal4Life - 7/23/2018, 11:11 AM
@ODanil - I like it more than the first Avengers. Its got so many great moments.
ftf530
ftf530 - 7/23/2018, 11:15 AM
@Tonic24k - I don't know if it's super underrated, but the hate makes no sense to me.

It's like the response everyone seemed to have to Gotg vol 2, or even Kingsman 2, where neither is necessarily a worse film, but since there's quite a bit of the same, people weren't as blown away by the second helping.

That being said, I actually do think the overall story for Ultron is better than A1, since A1 has a thinner plot than all but a few other mcu entries. Not complaining about A1, I loved it, but it was necessary to keep the plot simple to spoonfeed the concept to the general audience.

We've all seen what happens when the story doesn't make itself easy to follow for newcomers, or tries too hard to, or has bad marketing... (justice league and the defenders).
Kumkani
Kumkani - 7/23/2018, 11:16 AM
@ODanil - I honestly really liked it when I first saw it. I see its faults also but I won't call it a bad film or anything
Pigdango
Pigdango - 7/23/2018, 11:22 AM
@Tonic24k - Here's what I didn't like about it:
1) I hated that Ultron had a world ending evil plan. When he dismissed the notion of it early in the movie, I was quite excited, but then...ugh. Many of the great Ultron stories are very personal, and I would have preferred something more along those lines. Age of Ultron began and ended with the Avengers fighting a faceless horde of villains.
2) I didn't care for most of the character work in the movie. The Cap and Tony woodchopping scene was great, but aside from that, it was very weak. I didn't like what they did with Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, Black Widow and Hulk, Hawkeye and Thor. That's a really big portion of the team.
3) I really didn't like that they used the movie to essentially kill Agents of SHIELD. That whole "This is what SHIELD is supposed to be" BS was very low rent. I know Feige and Perlmutter have their differences, but keep it out of the movies. It was unnecessary. Just have the Avengers save the day.
4) I thought all the references to them saving people was over the top and ridiculous. I hated Man of Steel as much as anyone, but I found all that stuff to be petty.

That being said, there's a lot to like. The wood chopping scene, the hammer lifting scene, Pretty much everything to do with Vision was great, and all the work they did in Civil War and Infinity War has made Age of Ultron a far better and more essential part of the MCU than the placeholder it felt like when it came out.
Kumkani
Kumkani - 7/23/2018, 11:24 AM
@ftf530 - I think this is a way of explaining it. In economics we say that the satisfaction derived from consuming a product reduces as you consume more of it. That can be explained with sequels that are more or less the same as the original.

I do think AoU could have been a little bit different to help matters, but those criticisms extend to the first Avengers as well
Menks123
Menks123 - 7/23/2018, 11:24 AM
@ODanil - Love AoU. Like it a TINY bit more than Avengers 1.

My main gripes are how he handled Black Widow and killing off Quicksilver. But I watch it all the time, and enjoy it more and more.
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