Avengers: Endgame is on the way and theories are aplenty. One theory from yours truly seems to have sparked some strong reactions, though we can’t prove whether or not it’s true until next weekend. As the goal of the heroes in Avengers: Endgame is to undo Thanos snapping his fingers and restore half of the universe into existence, it seems the only way to do this that fans can think of is to travel back in time and prevent it from happening. If time travel does come into play, could Iron Man help himself reach such a point in the first place?
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Here’s the theory: Thanos is “cursed with knowledge” in regards to Tony Stark, likely because Tony flew a missile through the wormhole above the Battle of New York in The Avengers which took out the Mad Titan’s army. However, after sending the nuke at the ships in space, Iron Man slowly drifted back towards Earth only to narrowly make it out of space before the wormhole closed.
The question is: what if Tony Stark from the Avengers: Endgame timeline (the present, but 2012’s future) is in space and gives his unconcious self a boost through the wormhole? If Tony is going to make a sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame to save the world or restore the population of the universe, he will have to make it there in the first place. Perhaps Tony has this knowledge and flies toward that wormhole, ensuring that his past self makes it back to Earth, in order to survive long enough to save it in the future.
He would then be saving the world twice at once.
Check out the simplified version of the theory in my tweet below…
What if Tony Stark goes back in time to the Battle of New York and gives his unconscious self a push through the worm hole before it closes.
And the future Tony doesnโt make it out. #AvengersEndgame pic.twitter.com/wX3Mw7qnRA
โ Brandon Davis (@BrandonDavisBD) April 13, 2019
The theory may not come to fruition but it has sparked emotional responses from Marvel fans.
There have been a lot of gifs, devastated over the thought of both losing Tony Stark and watching him save himself…
โ annoyed (@IdkLover9) April 13, 2019
Emotional reactions aside, some fans have found details which only further the theory as the Marvel Cinematic Universe might have been planning to have a payoff for the moment all along.
In Iron Man 3, Tony is on the verge of an anxiety attack when a little kid asks him how he made it out of the wormhole. The dialogue seemed like a narrative device to fuel Tony’s PTSD story in Iron Man 3 but could actually be a set up for Future Tony helping his past self out of the wormhole.
Credit on this bit below…
@BrandonDavisBD, in IM3 when Stark signs the child’s drawing, the kid asked “how did you get out of the wormhole?” ๐ https://t.co/eH6jBb9j2v #mindblown #AvengersEndgame pic.twitter.com/2no2s59iqZ
โ Giacobbe Rainaldi (@jacobrainaldi) April 14, 2019
This could all mean that Tony’s arc is coming to an end after he finally found a family in the Avengers and Pepper Potts. After all, the entire journey Tony has undergone since the Russo Brothers took control of the character in Captain America: Civil War has been centered around a desire to have a family. If Future Tony either doesn’t make it out of the wormhole or does what else is necessary to undo the Snap, he could either die or go back in time far enough to lose his new family and have to start over. Either way, it’s heartbreaking, and time travel is a headache.
Do you think Tony Stark could travel back in time and be responsible for rescuing his past self from a hopeless drift from space? Could the moment have been planned all along? Or will nothing of the sort happen in Avengers: Endgame? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them to me on Instagram and Twitter!
Avengers: Endgame hits theaters on April 26.