Avengers: Endgame Writers Reveal Why Nebula Didn’t Wield the Infinity Gauntlet

Across two blockbuster movies, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame completely shifted everything we thought we knew about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While much of the films’ plot paved new ground, they did include some significant references to the Marvel Comics canon — and it sounds like that almost included one major moment. During ComicBook.com’s Quarantine Watch Party of Avengers: Endgame, co-writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely were asked whether or not there were plans to have Nebula (Karen Gillan) wield the Infinity Gauntlet during the film, just as she did in The Infinity Gauntlet storyline. As Markus explained, that moment was in the script “for a while”, but was removed because it “undercut the weight” of Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) eventually doing so.

While this detail was already confirmed through concept art for Endgame, the reasoning behind it being omitted certainly interesting. That explanation could very well end up polarizing fans, especially those who were hoping to see Nebula get her major comic-accurate moment, and overcome the years of abuse she suffered at the hands of Thanos (Josh Brolin).

“She suffers from some daddy issues,” Gillan said in an interview last year. “I think I’m excited for her to finally face the source of this abuse. This has been building through multiple movies…I would like to see her try and face that. I don’t know if she will. I’m not saying anything. I just got really nervous that I might have given something away.”

“While the Nebula from the past was killed by her future self in Avengers: Endgame, her demise was scripted a lot differently in another version,” Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame – The Art of the Movie reads. “In that draft, she was able to intercept the Stark gauntlet during the massive game of keepaway in the film’s final battle. Wanting to prove to her father Thanos that she is a capable and strong warrior, Nebula tries to use the glove herself– a nod to the 1991 comic book series Infinity Gauntlet, written by Jim Starlin. This Nebula learns she is not powerful enough to use the Stones and survive.”

Would you have wanted to see Nebula hold the Infinity Gauntlet in Avengers: Endgame? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Avengers: Endgame is currently available to stream on Disney+.