How ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Raises the Stakes

Now that the brand new Avengers: Infinity War trailer is here, Marvel fans are geeking harder than ever about what kind of action and character crossovers we’re going to see. However, it’s the storyline of Thanos trying to finally assemble the all-powerful Infinity Gauntlet that will have the biggest lasting impact on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as things will never be the same once the next two Avengers films are over.

We here at ComicBook.com had a chance to visit the set of Infinity War and speak with director Joe and Anthony Russo. During that conversation, the directors made it very clear that this film will raise the stakes for the entire MCU going forward.

Check out what Russo had to say when asked directly about game-changing events like major character deaths in Avengers: Infinity War:

“We’ll say this: we like mature storytelling. We like traumatic storytelling. We like intense storytelling. I think we appreciate conflict, and we appreciate stakes. Without stakes, it really isn’t a lot of value to the story. I think, if you look at the Marvel Universe as a whole, as a story that’s been told for 10 years, you can look at this as the climax. The stakes will be higher in this movie than they’ve ever been, times 10.”

After the second Avengers: Infinity War trailer, the stakes definitely seem higher than ever. Taking into account all the footage we’ve seen, there’s been implication that characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, Loki, and Doctor Strange all being in grave peril, with no guarantee that any of them make it out intact. Given that we know Avengers 4 will involve elements of time travel, there’s room for characters who suffer tragic deaths in Infinity War to still reappear in that next film.

All in all, it sounds like Avengers: Infinity War is going to make the Coulson sacrifice in the first film look like small potatoes by comparison. It will be interesting to see how the fandom reacts to the first major character deaths in the MCU, and if those deaths stay as permanent as the Russos have promised they will be.

Are you ready for the intensity of Avengers: Infinity War? Let us know in the comments!

Marvel Studios’ Black Panther is now playing in theaters. Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on April 27, 2018. It is 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.