The Avengers are obviously going to defeat Thanos in the upcoming Avengers: Endgame and undo the snap no matter what the cost might be. This is the endgame, after all, the epic conclusion of more than 10 years of Marvel movies, which means they’re bound to win. But Thanos may not be the film’s biggest villain, even if he’s the one to beat. A new theory says that the actual bad guy in Avengers 4 will ultimately end up helping the Avengers to defeat Thanos.
Reddit user ak2sup thinks the villain of the film is Kronos, who might be imprisoned in the Quantum Realm right now in that city we saw teased in Ant-Man and the Wasp. Kronos, the theory says, will give the Avengers the wrist devices that were spotted in photos from the Avengers: Endgame set as well as in a new poster. The gadget is believed to allow the wearer to travel through time, so Kronos would help the remaining heroes travel back and beat Thanos. Once that’s done, the true nature of Kronos would be revealed, as he may have a personal agenda aside from defeating Thanos.
The fan theory also proposes evidence that supports the arrival of Kronos, including the fact that Jim Starlin said one of his characters would be in Endgame. Also, the Redditor says that Doctor Strange filmed a scene with a CGI character, which could be Kronos. Finally, the logo of Endgame is purple and transparent… and Kronos is also purple and transparent. The full theory follows below:
Kronos is the main villain of Avengers Endgame (MCU) from FanTheories
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard from MCU fans that Thanos might not be the real villain of the film, and it’s entirely possible that Endgame will introduce one or more new villains who may return in future movies.
It’s also entirely possible the movie will go in a new direction we can’t see coming, and that’s what a different theory claims. A Redditor looked at what the Russo brothers said recently — that they wouldn’t have shot Infinity War and Endgame back to back given what they know now — taking it as an indication that the upcoming film won’t revolve exclusively around Thanos and undoing the snap.
Here’s what Anthony Russo told CinemaBlend a few days ago:
I think the challenge for all of us was finding the balance between the two films. Because each film is so complex on its own that sometimes considering both of them was a bit overwhelming. So we looked for opportunities in the process to separate the two so that our brains could be fully focused on the narrative. While the films have a connection, as the Marvel films do, they are distinct stories.
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speculates that the Russos may not have expected fans to like Thanos as much, and therefore Endgame isn’t going to focus as much on him. Even though the movie will be about undoing the snap, Endgame could take an unexpected twist that fans might not be able to predict:
The fact that they say they would change some things or do something different or something along those lines not sure of a specific wording they used. Maybe they are afraid that audiences expectations are going to be let down considering the direction of the movie? Everyone comes up with amazing and crazy theories of how to undo the snap and resurrect the characters but what if that isn’t really the absolute main point of the movie but it takes a different direction along with that storyline?
Then again, we don’t need any theories from fans to know for certain that we’re in for the unexpected. Just like previous MCU films made by the Russos, Endgame is surely meant to push the envelope and shock audiences yet again. It’s the way they do Marvel movies.
The official synopsis of the film, meanwhile, doesn’t give anything away, as any MCU fan could have written it right after the Infinity War credits rolled up:
After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018), the universe is in ruins. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe.
We’ll soon get the final pieces of the puzzle, as Captain Marvel launches on March 8th. Then the final movie of MCU’s Phase 3 , Avengers: Endgame, will premiere on April 26th.
