'Avengers: Infinity War' Writers Explain Killing That Popular Hero

Avengers: Infinity War earned quite a few audible reactions from audiences and some were a bit louder than others in the film's final moments. The writers regret none of them.

Spoilers for Avengers: Infinity War follow. Major spoilers!

Among the characters who disappeared with half of the universe after Thanos snapped his fingers was Black Panther. The wildly popular character only broke out as a global phenomenon a few months ago and, already, he's seemingly been taken away from fans. Avengers: Infinity War screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely regret nothing about making fans feel such a tragic loss.

"First of all, we would do it all over again," McFeely told Buzzfeed. "But remember, when we're writing [Infinity War], and even shooting, there is no Black Panther movie. We don't know it's going to be so good, so effective, so resonant. And we had to treat all these characters the same. People who leave us [in Infinity War] are the leads of their own franchises. And Black Panther's no different."

The main characters being erased from the universe was a decision made to make the stakes feel as great as the truly were when Thanos got his big victory. "We wanted that thing that happens at the end of that movie to have as much impact as possible," Markus said. "If you're very carefully getting rid of your supporting cast, then it does seem like you're pulling your punch."

While many suspect the next Avengers movie will undo a good number of those deaths and disappearances, the writers are warning fans not to be so optimistic.

"[Avengers 4] doesn't do what you think it does," Markus said. "It is a different movie than you think it is...Also…[the deaths are] real. I just want to tell you it's real, and the sooner you accept that, the sooner you will be able to move on to the next stage of grief."

"Put it this way," McFeely chimed in, "I think [Infinity War] is a fairly mature movie for a blockbuster. It's got a lot of fun in it, obviously, but boy, it gets very mature. The second one is also mature. We're going to own these choices, and hopefully surprise and delight you and get you invested. It's by the same studio, the same filmmaking team. They were written at the same time, shot at the same time. They're clearly connected, but they are definitely two different movies, one of which is dependent on what happened previous."

"We broke your heart," Markus added. "Now we're going to blow your mind!"

Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War are now playing in theaters. Ant-Man and The Wasp is set for release on July 6, 2018. Captain Marvel will follow it on March 6, 2019, with the untitled Avengers 4 set to tie everything about the Marvel Cinematic Universe into a bow on May 3, 2019. Leave your Marvel questions and thoughts in the comment section below or send them to @BrandonDavisBD on Twitter!