Entertainment

'Avengers: Endgame' Spoilers: 'Infinity War' Trailer Confirms Time Travel?

by Mae Abdulbaki

Marvel’s already released two trailers for Avengers: Endgame, but could a third teaser have been hiding in plain sight all along. A bold new theory argues that the original Infinity War trailer is actually full of scenes from Avengers: Endgame — we just didn’t know it at the time. In hindsight, this theory isn’t as ridiculous as it might sound, and it might confirm a key detail about the upcoming Marvel movie: time travel.

Before diving in, it’s worth noting that you should treat this entire thing with a a healthy dose of doubt. It might be right, but it might just be a fun idea with no real legs to stand on. Either way, be warned that if this turns out to be true it’s definitely an Avengers: Endgame spoiler.

The basic premise of this theory from redditor u/BigMartin58 is that scenes from the Infinity War trailers that don’t match up perfectly with the final cut of the movie could represent moments where the Avengers later traveled back in time and changed the course of events. The Hulk’s appearance at the Battle of Wakanda (in the trailer only) is the most well-known example, but there are plenty more if you look hard enough.

“If you rewatch the trailer for Infinity War with the perspective that it’s the trailer for Endgame it brings a whole new perspective,” they write, pointing to specific differences between the Infinity War trailer and the actual movie that might hint at a deeper meaning.

Here’s the key moments to look for:

1. When Tony Stark first meets the Black Order in the trailer we see him take off his glasses while clothed as a civilian, but in the movie he’s already in hi Iron Man suit when the glasses come off. “Perhaps, in Endgame, he decides not to fight in this scene,” u/BigMartin58 writes.

2. When Captain America catches that spear during his first appearance in the movie he’s list up by a window, but in the trailer he’s shrouded in darkness.

Captain America in the 'Infinity War' trailer

Marvel

The same scene in the finished movie.

Marvel

3. Finally, two different moments in the Infinity War trailer show Thanos’s wielding fewer Infinity Stones than we know he actually has in those same scenes during the movie. Is it possible the Avengers will be able to stop his plan before it ever happens in Endgame?

These are interesting differences, but they can mostly be explained away by editing rather than time travel. Tony Stark isn’t wearing his super suit because it hadn’t been animated yet. Captain America is covered in shadow because the window hadn’t been edited in yet. And the Infinity Stones were photoshopped out to avoid spoiling key plot details.

Then again, it’s possible that these subtle changes could be hinting at a bigger plot twist, and they’re not the only ones. Another commenter, redditor u/k0binator, pointed out two more examples from subsequent Infinity War trailer:

1. When Peter Parker and Doctor Strange first meet in the trailer they’re facing each other and Strange is “fully focused on Peter,” but in the movie, Strange is in the middle of a conversation with Stark. The dialogue also changes slightly to reflect that dynamic.

2. In the trailer, when Star Lord tells Tony he has a plan, Iron Man responds “Wow!” But in the movie he never says that, suggesting that it’s a knowing response from a time traveling Tony who already knows that Star Lord is going to mess up his own plan.

Again, while these theories might be pointing at a time travel plot in Avengers: Endgame where we see familiar moments play out slightly differently, it could just as easily be an issue of editing. In these cases, it’s possible that the trailer featured one version of each scene, while the final Infinity War cut ended up using a different take.

Still, based on that scene of the Hulk at Wakanda, it seems pretty certain that Avengers: Endgame will offer some sort of redo on infinity War. However, whether that means a repeat of every important scene or just the big final battle remains to be seen.

And while we doubt that the Infinity War trailer was ever actually meant to double as an Endgame teaser, the fact that so many moments fail to match up correctly with the movie certainly suggests that something unusual was going on during the filming process. A time loop situation would at least explain that.

Avengers: Endgame opens April 26, 2019.