Avengers: Endgame marked the end of the line for characters like Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, but it set other characters on new paths. For example, Sam Wilson, Anthony Mackie will be leaving behind his Falcon persona and taking up the mantle of Captain America.
Some fans wondered why the shield wasn’t passed on to Bucky Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), who has enhanced abilities similar to Rogers’ own. Speaking to Wired, Endgame directors Joe and Anthony Russo gave their take. “ has a very complicated history,” says Joe. “He has a damaged mind. I dunno if you wanna hand a very powerful weapon to someone who is vulnerable like that.” Ouch.
Whether you agree with that or not, it effectively may not mean much, since both characters will be teaming up in a new Disney+ series. Even if Bucky doesn’t technically have the title of Captain America, he’ll still be carrying out his mission.
In other Endgame news, writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus told Canada.com about a scene cut from early drafts of the movie. “At one point, we had a different way of getting to the Time Stone which involved some characters breaking into (Doctor Strange’s) Sanctum Sanctorum and being pursued by all the weird stuff that happens to be trapped inside there,” Markus said. “It was totally off story and unnecessary and it got cut, but it was fun to write.”
I can get behind that; there are only so many times I can watch Dr. Strange’s cape attack people.
Marvel Studios’ AVENGERS: ENDGAME..Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.)..Photo: Film Frame..©Marvel Studios 2019
Markus also commented on Tony Stark’s death, and whether it was mandated by Marvel.
"We weren’t there to just kill characters off. We were told, ‘If the story demands it, you can take people off the board. But if there’s a good story to be told and no one dies, go ahead and tell that one too."
That sounds like the right way to go about it. As we all know, Stark did die at the film’s conclusion; Markus thinks that that was a natural conclusion to his story arc. “In Endgame, we were trying to finish arcs, and for Iron Man/Tony Stark to give up his life and sacrifice himself for the good of the universe seemed like a really good narrative closure for the billionaire playboy who had been learning over the course of several films (to be a better person).”
Indeed it was. And we still love you 3000, Mr. Stark.
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h/t SyFy Wire