‘Avengers 4’ Promo Artwork Reveals an Upgraded War Machine

Be ready for War Machine to get a serious upgrade before he goes into battle against Thanos in Avengers 4.

The hero, who was paralyzed in Captain America: Civil War but apparently granted mobility by his armor, was one of the few “next-generation” heroes to survive the bloodbath (well, no blood was shed, but you get what we’re talking about) at the end of Avengers: Infinity War, and seems poised, along with the original generation of Avengers, to be a focal point for the next film.

In what appears to be concept art for the next film, posted on Twitter (and seen below), War Machine gets a new, topheavy look with a Pacific Rim-inspired silhouette, massive arms and a huge cannon.

Ironically, as Tony invests more and more into nanites for the Iron Man suit, leaving it looking more and more like shiny tights, the War Machine armor seems to be going entirely the other way.

James “Rhodey” Rhodes, played originally by Terrence Howard in Iron Man, was recast for his second appearance. Don Cheadle has now appeared in a handful of Marvel movies as the beloved character, who but his butt on the line with his government bosses in order to help out Captain America’s fugitive heroes in Avengers: Infinity War.

Rhodey is not alone in his upgrades; art that has been leaking out for Avengers 4 suggests new or at least tweaked costumes for Captain America, Black Widow, and Hawkeye — plus the most controversial change of all: a shirt for the Incredible Hulk.

Bruce Banner spent most of Infinity War unable to summon the Hulk, who refused to come out after being beaten badly by Thanos in the movie’s opening scenes. Later, filmmakers would suggest that the Hulk was not scared of Thanos, as most fans assumed, but merely angry with Banner for only calling on him when he needed something to get punched.

Avengers: Infinity War is in theaters now. It will be followed by Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6, 2018, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.