‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Stars Rave About Josh Brolin’s “Terrifying” Performance

Avengers: Infinity War is being hailed as the culmination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, teaming up all of the heroes that we’ve watched save the world countless times over the years. In order to pull off this cinematic feat, the film needs to create a villain worthy of the entire franchise.

According to some of the film’s stars, Thanos is exactly that and much more, thanks in large part to a brilliant performance from Josh Brolin.

The Avengers: Infinity War edition of Empire Magazine was released today, featuring several interviews from the cast and creators of the film. When some of these stars were asked about Thanos, they couldn’t help but praise the work Brolin did on set.

“Josh is terrifying,” said Tom Holland, who plays Spider-Man/Peter Parker. “He has to wear this stupid mo-cap costume with big, rolling polystyrene shoulders and a tennis ball two feet above his head. He looks ridiculous, but as soon as the cameras roll he becomes this nine foot tall, terrifying alien.”

Backpacking off of Holland’s comments, MCU OG Robert Downey Jr. explained that Brolin’s self-awareness made him perfect for this kind of role, and that he kept the cast on their toes while they were shooting.

“I love him,” concurs Robert Downey Jr. “Brolin doesn’t take himself seriously, but there’s a lot of weight in how he’s portraying this guy. We literally are all a little bit scared when he’s done cracking wise and steps into it. Get ready, brother. The Brolin Effect is coming.”

For several years, audiences and critics took issue with the villains in Marvel movies. Many believed that these characters, who were supposed to be threatening, felt like nothing more than cookie cutter bad guys. The MCU films of late have helped to change that perception, with villains like Hela (Cate Blanchett), Ego (Kurt Russell), Vulture (Michael Keaton), and especially Killmonger (Michael B. Jordon) taking things to a new level.

It looks as though Thanos will compound on this recent success, becoming one of the most monumental villains in superhero movie history.

In addition to Brolin’s performance, one factor adding to Thanos’ greatness comes from the fact that much of the movie will actually focus on him. During a visit to the Infinity War set, screenwriter Stephen McFeely talked about making Thanos the main character of the film.

“One of the big challenges is how to make sure he’s not just a relentless machine collecting stones like he’s going shopping,” McFeely said. “So we want to give him a full weighted emotional story. You can kind of say this is Thanos’ origin story so that he will get the weight of any of the previous heroes in terms of the decisions he has to make in order to get what he wants.”

Avengers: Infinity War is set to hit theaters on April 27, and Marvel will follow that up with Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6. Black Panther is still playing across the U.S. where it’s hoping to win a record sixth consecutive weekend at the box office.