‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Directors Reveal New Details About Ebony Maw

While Thanos will be taking center stage in Avengers: Infinity War, he’ll also have allies in his quest to obtain the Infinity Stones as the Black Order make their big screen debut. And now we’re learning more about the character who appears to be his second in command.

Directors Anthony and Joseph Russo spoke with Joe.ie about the mysterious Ebony Maw, who will be played by Irish actor Tom Vaughan-Lawlor.

Joe Russo said they casted Vaughan-Lawlor because “he’s an amazing actor.”

“We really were looking for actors to embody these characters of the children of Thanos, called the Black Order,” Joe said. “This character Ebony Maw in particular is like Thanos’ herald. He’s a little bit of his hype man. And Thanos is sort of a culty character. Ebony Maw, the character who Tom plays, is the one that builds up the cult.”

In the comics, Ebony Maw is manipulative and not unwilling to work against his own master’s wishes for personal gain. He even betrays Thanos at one point, siding with his Inhuman son Thane.

“The character needed a sense of humor and to be a bit dry, and he’s stealing all of his scenes, so the character seems to be popping,” Joe said.

“And like Josh Brolin with Thanos, Tom is playing a character that is largely created digitally with graphics, and animated, but it is based very specifically on his performance,” Anthony added.

Fans catch a glimpse of Vaughan-Lawlor in the latest full-length trailer, in which Ebony Maw appears to be torturing and/or interrogating Doctor Strange, which appears to be straight out of the comics.

As the Sorcerer Supreme stays suspended in the air, translucent spikes penetrate his head and body, causing him to scream in agony. Ebony Maw creepily brings his finger to his mouth, beckoning his victim to “shush.”

Vaughan-Lawlor previously spoke with Inverse about about his character, hinting that his aspirations might be more in line with the comic book version of Ebony Maw.

“They were all about the truth of this character and what his objective was and what he wants within that universe,” Vaughan-Lawlor said, teasing that he wouldn’t just be a henchman. “Although you’re playing at the operatic supervillain level, what they were asking of me as an actor was to find the truth of the character in the scenes.”

Avengers: Infinity War premieres on April 27th.

Are you excited to see the Black Order’s big screen debut? Let us know in the comment section!