Avengers: Endgame Directors Shocked That Fans Laughed at Thanos’ Decapitation

It was a move that shocked most movie-goers. Within the first 15 minutes of Avengers: Endgame, Thanos (Josh Brolin) was decapitated courtesy of Stormbreaker and Thor (Chris Hemsworth). What’s supposed to be a serious point in the plot ended up resulting in many chuckles — presumably because of Thor’s “I went for the head” line — and the directors and writers of the hit were sure to notice.

During the director’s commentary attached with the digital release of Avengers: Endgame, writer Stephen McFeely admitted he was surprised it always manages to get a laugh or nervous shock, as he calls it.

“I was just saying…it is…it…it gets a laugh every time I’m in the theater,” McFeely says. “Or like a nervous shock, right?”

That’s when director Anthony Russo admitted he noticed the same thing. “People laugh at that and I was always shocked by that,” the filmmaker responds.

As Thanos‘ head rolls on the floor of his humble farm abode, Alan Silvestri’s haunting score comes into play and that’s what McFeely says changes the tone from somewhat comedic to full-on terrifying.

“But I think the Silvestri score and the long slow walk here make you go, “Oh, crap. Yeah, this is… We’ve got nothing now,” explains McFeely.

Elsewhere on the commentary track, the group admitted the Mad Titan let the Avengers kill him because he had completed his mission, making sure to destroy the Infinity stones so that nobody could undo his actions.

“‘So at one point in the room, everyone’s getting real frustrated saying, ‘What is the story here?’” McFeely asked. “And I think Trinh Tran, our executive producer just said, ‘God I really wish we could just kill him.’ And we all went, ‘Wait a second. Could you? What does that mean?’” And it sent us down this whole road, where we solve the issue in the first, what, 12 minutes? I don’t know when this happens.”

Avengers: Endgame is now available digitally ahead of a home media release on August 13th.

Upcoming Marvel Studios projects include Black Widow on May 1, 2020, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier in fall 2020, The Eternals on November 6, 2020, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on February 12, 2021, WandaVision in spring 2021, Loki in spring 2021, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on May 7, 2021, What If? In summer 2021, Hawkeye in fall 2021, and Thor: Love and Thunder on November 5, 2021.