After Tony Stark used the Infinity Gauntlet to stop Thanos and his army in
Avengers: Endgame, he was left mortally wounded and unable to speak. It was an upsetting visual that made Iron Man's death harder to watch than it already was, but it could have been a whole lot worse.
"We gave the filmmakers a full range [of looks] to choose from and one of those was where the energy from the stones had acted right up into his face and popped one of his eyeballs out and it was hanging out on his cheek," Weta digital VFX supervisor Matt Aitken recently revealed before adding with a laugh: "They didn't go for that one."
We can all be glad didn't happen, but there was a good reason the movie's VFX team went to such extremes. "With any development item, you want to be able to give the filmmakers a full gamut, from sort of a light touch all the way to horror, and this will never be in it," explains producer Jen Underdahl. "But by doing that exercise and by letting them see sort of every stage, they can kind of pinpoint and circle the drain on where they think the look is going to settle."
"We did go several rounds on that guy from grisly to not so grisly to more light of a touch, back to OK this is the spot where we think the audience is not going to get too freaked out, but also really understand that Tony has reached the point of no return," Underdahl added.
Surprisingly, one version presented to Joe and Anthony Russo actually paid homage to an iconic Batman villain. "We did do a Two-Face version where you got inside and you saw the sinews and you saw them in the teeth and that," Underdahl said of one unused design, before acknowledging that going down that gory route would have taken moviegoers out of such a powerful moment.
It's certainly interesting to get some insight into the thought process that goes into creating a moment such as this one, but we can all probably live without seeing Tony's eye hanging out!
Hit the "View List" button to check out some of
Avengers: Endgame's most must-see Easter Eggs!
Roscoe Simmons
When Steve Rogers disguises himself as a soldier in the 1970s, he's shown wearing a uniform with the name "Roscoe" on the pocket.
This has to be a reference to the comic character Roscoe Simmons. He took over as Captain America when Steve became Nomad but was ultimately murdered by the Red Skull.
Nebula And The Infinity Gauntlet
In the comics, it's Nebula who uses the Infinity Gauntlet to undo Thanos' actions and she restores herself to her rightful appearance in the process. Given the nature of the Stones in the MCU, that doesn't happen here but she does briefly get her hands on it and it's hard not to wonder if that moment is about to play out!
New Asgard
In the source material, New Asgard floats above a small town in Oklahoma but the MCU version is a small fishing village somewhere in Norway. It's actually Tonsberg, the village from
Captain America: The First Avenger where the Red Skull found the Tesseract.
That's quite a contrast but definitely a fun way to reference the fact the God of Thunder once brought his people to Earth when they found themselves without a home.
Namor The Submariner
When Black Widow meets with Okoye, Rocket, Captain Marvel, and War Machine after the five year time jump, there's talk of an earthquake under the sea which Okoye notes they're best off leaving well alone.
It's pure speculation for the time being but could this be a reference to Namor the Submariner? We know there are complicated rights issues surrounding the character but something about this feels like a tease...
Jim Starlin's Cameo
Equally as deserving of a cameo given how much his work influenced this movie, Infinity Gauntlet writer Jim Starlin is also part of the aforementioned support group and has a couple of lines of dialogue which he delivers with great effect.
It's awesome to see him score an appearance here, and he's definitely deserving considering how important his work to the entire Infinity Saga has been.
Ant-Man's Helmet
During that trip back to the 1970s, we spend a few moments with the young Hank Pym and see that he's been working on a prototype Ant-Man helmet. It just so happens to bear a striking resemblance to the one his comic book counterpart wore during that period and looks amazing.
A-Force
It's a little on the nose but during
Avengers: Endgame's epic final battle, the women of the Marvel Cinematic Universe unite to take on Thanos and they're led by Captain Marvel.
This doesn't necessarily mean we're going to see A-Force (the all-female Avengers team) down the line but it's certainly a nice taste of what could be if Marvel heads in that direction.
The Post-Credits Scene
Avengers: Endgame doesn't feature any additional scenes during the credits and that's obviously a first for an MCU movie.
However, stick around right to the very end and you'll be treated to an Easter Egg of sorts as the noise of Tony building his rudimentary Iron Man armour in the 2008 movie can briefly be heard, referencing where it all began for this shared world.
Cheeseburgers
Right at the very end of the movie, Happy Hogan attempts to comfort a crestfallen Morgan Stark after her father's funeral. Asking her what she wants, the youngster says she'd like some cheeseburgers and he vows to get as many as she likes.
What you may not recall is that shortly after her father returned from captivity in the first Iron Man movie, he too had a craving for them. This is a lovely way to reference where it all began and to show the connection between these two.
Captain America's Destroyed Shield
The moment Thanos smashes Captain America's shield is lifted straight from the
Infinity Gauntlet comic book and is a moment fans have been hoping to see on the big screen ever since these movies were announced.
By the time the credits roll, Steve has luckily brought back a repaired version from the past which he then gives to The Falcon, naming him the new Captain America in the process.
Budapest
First referenced in
The Avengers, Budapest is where Black Widow and Hawkeye first met and they talk about being a long way from there as they blast through outer space.
Given the way things end for Natasha in Avengers: Endgame, we'll hopefully find out what happened in Budapest during her solo movie as that will almost certainly be an origin story now.
Morgan Stark
It was teased in
Avengers: Infinity War but Tony Stark and Pepper Potts' daughter does indeed wind up being called Morgan in this film. However, the Morgan Stark from the comic books wasnt a sweet little girl who loved Iron Man "3000." Instead, he was Tony's cousin and he had a lot of criminal connections!
House Arrest
The movie kicks off with Clint Barton spending the day with his family and teaching his daughter how to use a bow (will she take Kate Bishop's place in the MCU, I wonder?). Unfortunately for Hawkeye, they all turn to dust moments later.
Look closely at the hero's ankle here, though, and you'll notice that he's clearly under house arrest for the role he played in Captain America: Civil War, just like Scott Lang in Ant-Man and The Wasp.
Black Panther Meets Clint Barton...Again
In
Captain America: Civil War, T'Challa makes it clear to Hawkeye that he doesn't care who he is when the archer introduces himself as Clint. His attitude has clearly changed after returning from the dead, though, as he greets the hero in the final battle by his actual name.
I guess they just became best friends!
HYDRA Cap
A few years back, Marvel Comics came under fire for revealing that Steve Roger's was secretly a HYDRA agent and while it was later revealed that it was all a result of the Red Skull altering reality with a Cosmic Cube, people still hated it for the most part.
Avengers: Endgame has a lot of fun with the concept, though, as Steve Rogers - in 2012 - utters the line "Hail, HYDRA!" to Jasper Sitwell in a great play on the elevator scene from Captain America: The Winter Soldier in order to get Loki's staff from him.
Community Cameos
It's become commonplace for actors from Community to pop up in Marvel Studios movies directed by the Russo Brothers, and this time it's Ken Jeong and Yvette Nicole Brown who do the honours.
Brown plays someone who is very suspicious of Steve Rogers and Tony Stark on that Army base in the 1970s, while Jeong is a security guard watching over the storage boxes where Scott Lang's van has been kept during the time he was lost in the Quantum Realm.
Rescue
As expected, Pepper Potts does indeed suit up as Rescue in
Avengers: Endgame. She gets the armour from Tony as a birthday present but what you may not realise is that the colour scheme is based on how the character appeared in
Iron Man: Animated Adventures TV series rather than the comic books.
Some Unexpected Guests
Tony Stark's funeral sees all of Earth's Mightiest Heroes assemble to say goodbye to Iron Man but there are some unexpected faces in the crowd.
For example, May Parker, Thunderbolt Ross, Maria Hill, and Harley Keener (the kid from Iron Man 3, now all grown up) are all in attendance despite not playing a role in the film beforehand. The floating funeral banquet features the Arc Reactor Pepper had customised in Iron Man to read, "Proof Tony Stark Has A Heart."
The MCU's First Openly Gay Character
While we know that
The Eternals is expected to feature a gay lead, it's actually
Avengers: Endgame that delivers the MCU's first openly gay character...and he's played by Joe Russo!
During a therapy meeting for those who lost loved ones during the Snap, his character talk about going on a date with a guy who started crying before their salads were brought to the table and it's a good way of showing the impact Thanos' actions had on normal people.
Edwin Jarvis
Well, I guess Agent Carter is now officially canon! Moments after Howard Stark unwittingly meets his son, we see him turn to his driver Edwin Jarvis and point out that the man he just spoke to was awfully familiar.
Regardless of whether you watched the show, Jarvis' appearance obviously offers some insight into who Tony named his first A.I. after and it's a neat moment for fans of the series.
Killing Baby Thanos
The moral dilemmas associated with being able to travel back in time have been discussed a lot over the years and it's Rhodey who suggests going back in time to kill baby Thanos.
The Hulk is horrified and points out that ot wouldnt work anyway for reasons you're best hearing him explain in the movie itself. Deadpool 2 also utilised time-travel as a plot device and saw the Merc with the Mouth travel back to strangle baby Hitler in a controversial post-credits scene.
Stan Lee's Final Cameo
While no one would have known it at the time,
Avengers: Endgame features the late, great Stan "The Man" Lee's final cameo appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
It comes during that trip back to the 1970s when he drives past an Army base and shouts, "Hey man, make love, not war!" Not a bad final message from the legendary creator, eh?