Avengers: Infinity War brought fans the first chapter of the finale to the MCU’s Phase 3, and with it came some devastating events that many didn’t see coming. We saw many characters bite the dust (pun intended) after Thanos snapped his fingers and wiped out half the universe’s population. Among the more shocking deaths were the Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, Dr. Strange, and, of course, Spider-Man.
What makes some of these so unbelievable is the fact that they have sequels planned for Spider-Man and Guardians of the Galaxy, the director of Doctor Strange wants to do a sequel, and with the success of its first film, it’s safe to assume that Black Panther will get another film as well. So, does the knowledge of these sequels dampen the impact of their on screen deaths as intended by the writers?
Collider sat down with Infinity War’s writers, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, and asked them just how to handle the marketing situation for the upcoming Spider-Man sequel.
“It’s a good question and it’s certainly the bigger question about audience expectation and you know too much about how Hollywood works or release schedules things like that, does it hurt your enjoyment of the movie?” McFeely asked. “We can’t make movies for people who read Variety, you know what I mean?”
The writers had a very difficult task of making these deaths hit a nerve, even with the knowledge that they would have to be brought back in some sort of fashion, but they feel they were able to put it off.
“Clearly, if there are people crying and there are articles about how to console your children at the end of it, it doesn’t matter what you know,” Markus pointed out.
They even jokingly stated that a Peter Parker free Spider-Man sequel would be possible.
“Look, two hours of Aunt May crying, it could be great,” Markus joked.
Another death that was an issue for even a certain MCU producer was that of Black Panther. Development and Production Executive Nate Moore told the Huffington Post that he initially protested the King of Wakanda’s death.
“I knew pretty well what they were talking about and personally urged them to reconsider. But the storytelling made sense, so I love that we got to see a little bit more of Wakanda in that film, and I hope to see how they’re going to resolve that.”
We will all just have to wait and see what the final fates of all our beloved characters when Avengers 4 hits theaters in May of 2019.
How did you handle the deaths in Avengers: Infinity War? What are your theories on future stories? Let us know in the comments below!