By now, I’m sure we all know that a LOT of heroes met their end in Avengers: Infinity War. (If you haven’t seen it yet, stop reading now.)
Within the world of the film, the victims were completely random. It was this indiscriminate genocide that Thanos believed would bring balance to the universe. However, when it comes to the filmmakers’ decision of who to exterminate, more thought went into the choices. Speaking to ComicBook.com, the Russo brothers explained:
“All of our choices are based on story. It’s based upon the road that these characters have traveled, in not only this movie, but throughout the entire entity up to this point because, again, these movies are the culmination. So all we can say is that they are very focused story choices. That’s our motivation for everything. And, again, that’s why we love Marvel so much is they never let the tail wag the dog. The creative choices always lead the process and then they figure out how to pull off the miracle of making it work on a business level.”
A huge number of important characters perished in the film, including Scarlet Witch, Black Panther, Bucky Barnes, Doctor Strange, Star-Lord, Groot, Drax, Mantis, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, and Spider-Man. There were also those who were vanquished before Thanos’s balancing act: Heimdall, Loki, Gamora, and Vision. Filming these demises was very difficult for the cast and crew.
“A lot of tears. They’re never easy conversations to have with people. But I think that people are understanding that the story comes first and a lot of these people have really amazing careers and lots of films that they want to make, so, ultimately, I think they go through a grieving process like anyone but you come out the other side at some point and understand what being part of the Marvel Universe did for you. And, like with us, when we move on from Marvel, it’s done amazing things for us and allows us a lot of other opportunities in our careers.”
Several of the dusted characters still have solo films in the works, so we can only assume that they will be restored to life somehow. But if you’re hoping for spoilers to leak, don’t hold your breath. The Russos actually made several different fake scripts to give to the members of the cast, to prevent important plot details from getting out. Many didn’t even know their characters were being targeted until it was time to film their dusting scenes.
What do you think of this explanation? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!