AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR - All The Biggest New Details And Secrets From The Movie's Home Release
With Avengers: Infinity War now available on Digital HD, we've combed through the director's commentary and special features in order to bring you all the biggest secrets and new details about the movie...
Avengers: Infinity War is now available on Digital HD and while it doesn't hit Blu-ray for another couple of weeks, we've been able to comb through the special features and director's commentary to bring you a breakdown of all the biggest reveals included there. From moments you will have missed to behind the scenes details and teases about Avengers 4, the extras make for fascinating viewing.
However, if you don't want to wait or simply want a closer look at what to expect, you need to check this list out. For example, did you know that Captain America was originally going to return much later in the movie or that a key Spider-Man sequence was reshot? How about the fates of Korg and Valkyrie? To see these new reveals, all you guys have to do is click on the "View List" button down below.
Keep A Close Eye On Thanos' Final Scene
As you're no doubt well aware, the end of Avengers: Infinity War pays homage to the Infinity Gauntlet comic as Thanos can be seen living peacefully on a farm, no longer wearing his armour. However, if you pause the movie and look to the right of the screen, you'll see that just like his comic book counterpart, the Mad Titan has created a scarecrow using his battle armour (another nod to the source material).
The Mad Titan Was Originally Going To Visit Xandar
The Russos confirm that some early drafts of the screenplay featured Thanos paying a visit to Xandar in order to retrieve the Power Stone from the Nova Corps (where it was left in Guardians of the Galaxy). The plan was for Nebula to encounter her "father" there but the filmmakers ultimately decided that we didn't need to see the villain get every single Infinity Stone as the process would be too repetitive.
Steve Rogers Was Originally Going To Return Much Later
One of the few complaints about Avengers: Infinity War is the fact that Captain America didn't get a big enough role in the movie. While the Russos promise that he'll have much more to do in Avengers 4, everyone involved with this release actually wanted his entrance to come as late as possible, and the original plan was that he wouldn't make his return up until Thanos invaded Wakanda. Crazy, right?
Valkyrie Is Alive...But What About Korg?
The directors have confirmed that Thanos only wiped out half of the Asgardians on Thor's ship and while they confirmed that Valkyrie managed to escape, they wouldn't confirm whether or not Korg was among them. He was the breakout character in Thor: Ragnarok so it would be insane for Marvel to kill him off. The only explanation would be that Taika Waititi doesn't want to work with Marvel again.
Stormbreaker's Creation
Thor's mission to create Stormbreaker takes up a big chunk of screentime in Avengers: Infinity War and there was apparently a lot of discussion about how that could play out. The directors even considered using a dragon at one point but they ultimately decided that Eitri made the most sense, especially as they could tie him to Thanos and the King of the Dwarves making the Infinity Gauntlet for him.
Yes, That Was Kenneth Branagh
There's been a lot of speculation that the Asgardian sending out a distress call at the start of the movie was actually Thor director Kenneth Branagh and that's confirmed in the director's commentary!
Why The Red Skull Returned
The Red Skull's return was one of the biggest surprises in Avengers: Infinity War but why was he brought back? Well, the filmmakers needed someone on Vormir to explain how to get the Soul Stone and he was the most logical choice because he was the first character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to show an interest/obsession in the Infinity Stones and his death wasn't shown in The First Avenger.
Why Did Thanos Wait Until Now To Track Down The Infinity Stones?
There's been a lot of discussion about why Thanos would wait until now to track down the Infinity Stones but it turns out that there's a very good reason for that; he didn't know where the Soul Stone was. Without that, he would never be able to pull off his plan and it wasn't until Nebula attempted to kill him and confirmed that Gamora knew the location that he decided to start collecting them.
How Much Time Passes Throughout The Movie?
Surprisingly, neither Joe nor Anthony Russo were sure how much time passes between the beginning and end of the movie but they guessed that it would be around two days which does make sense.
Confusion In Wakanda
When shooting was taking place for the battle in Wakanda, Black Panther was still in production! As a result, the directors actually had to ask the actors what their characters would chant on the battlefield and neither of them had any idea that T'Challa's cry of "Wakanda Forever!" would feel so powerful (it obviously took on a life of its own after his solo movie was released and has become iconic as a result).
Work Started On The Movie Surprisingly Early
Interestingly, it's revealed that Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely began working on Avengers: Infinity War's screenplay in January 2016 and that was quite some time before the Thor: Ragnarok screenplay even existed. Becuase of that, the idea of where the movie actually begins had to come a lot later on in the process and there were a number of ideas floating around for how it could kick off.
"Space Dogs"
As you may remember, Rocket Raccoon refers to Thanos' monstrous army as "space dogs." Unbelievably, the idea for that came after someone in an early test screening of Avengers: Infinity War called them that on a score sheet. Everyone thought that was pretty funny and decided to add it to the movie! So, if that was you, you're responsible for a cracking line in the biggest release of 2018!
There Were Some Doubts About The Final Act
Setting the final battle in Wakanda did make a lot of sense (particularly for narrative reasons) but some people were a little unsure just how well it would work. Then, Black Panther was released and everyone realised that, in hindsight, it was a pretty smart decision. It also allowed Marvel to capitalise on that movie's success by including those shots of the African nation in trailers and TV spots.
Thanos's Backstory Was Never Shot
There have been a lot of conflicting reports about whether or not scenes featuring Thanos' backstory were cut but the Russos have finally confirmed that those never made it past the scripting stage.
The Black Order's Origin Was Also Scrapped
It was also revealed that some drafts included backstories for The Black Order but those were also cut and the only remnant is keeping Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive together to get across the fact that they're married (something which is actually hinted at during a couple of different scenes).
A Reshot Scene Featuring Spider-Man
Apparently, the writers struggled to figure out how Peter Parker would get aboard the spaceship, so his first appearance in that was completely reshot. No details were offered on how it originally played out but they did note that the wall-crawler's death was originally a little shorter and that the youngster dying in Iron Man's arms is going to have some major ramifications for Tony Stark moving forward.
Giving The Heroes A Chance Against Thanos
Due to the fact Thanos is so powerful - especially after acquiring the Infinity Stones - the filmmakers had to figure out a way the heroes could take the fight to him without being wiped out. Ultimately, they decided that the Mad Titan needed to make a fist in order to use a stone's power and with that rule in place, the idea for that battle on Titan was dreamed up and played out pretty brilliantly.
A Scrapped Iron Man Vs. Ebony Maw Battle
It sounds like everyone struggled with how to handle a fight between Iron Man and Ebony Maw aboard his spaceship and while there were a number of different iterations, all of them were eventually deemed to be too much. So, in a nod to Raiders of the Lost Ark, the Russos decided to cheat and have Thanos' henchman sucked into outer space, similar to Indy pulling a gun out to win a fight quickly.
How Thanos Managed To Throw A Moon
One of the coolest moments comes when Thanos pulled a Moon from the sky and threw it at the heroes. Now, we know that he used the Power Stone to grab it and the Space Stone to pull it down.
Is Gamora Trapped Inside The Soul Stone?
After Thanos snapped his fingers, we saw the Mad Titan interact with a young Gamora who many fans believe is trapped within the Soul Stone after he murdered her. All the directors would say is that he went into a "dream state" created by the Soul Stone and that it's there he encounters a "spiritual representation" of his favourite daughter. We'll let you guys make of those remarks what you will.
The Tesseract's Destruction
The movie kicks off with some real shockers, including the Mad Titan crushing the Tesseract in his hand to reveal the Infinity Stone within. As you might expect, the thinking behind that was to set the stakes and show just how powerful the villain is. The same reportedly applies to the very quick deaths of Loki and Heimdall and while some fans weren't happy about that, it does make sense thinking about it.
Why We Had To Wait For That Captain Marvel Tease
Avengers: Infinity War didn't have a mid-credits scene so why did we have to wait until the very end for that Captain Marvel tease? Well, the Russos wanted us to sit there feeling sad for as long as possible!