Avengers: Infinity War has been out for a week now, and if the box office is any indication a good chunk of people have seen the film. But in the midst of all the easter eggs, drama, and non-stop action the movie provides, fans have noticed one big thing: there were a lot of scenes in the trailers that didn’t make it into the film.
You might be remembering last time this happened in a big blockbuster: Suicide Squad. When Joker was short-changed in the final film, in contrast to what we saw in trailers, fans were in an uproar. But in the case of Infinity War, the changes don’t seem to be nearly as dramatic as Joker’s usage, or lack thereof, in Suicide Squad, and therefore fan reaction has been much more tame.
Even still, several big shots from Infinity War‘s three teasers and trailers didn’t make the cut. And trust me, if you hadn’t noticed already, some of these are head-scratchers.
First, and foremost, the movie actually excludes the money shot from the end of the first trailer, where Captain America leads a charge of heroes – including Hulk – during the battle in Wakanda.
We don’t know who they were charging. It could have been them going to save Vision, or perhaps a different beginning for the scene when Thanos enters the fray. It also includes the Hulk, who – spoiler alert – only appears in the beginning of Infinity War, and doesn’t re-emerge in that final battle.
So, why the cut? It could be that they wanted the sequence with Thanos to play out slower and more somberly, to highlight the stakes and ultimately the futility of their struggle. Remember, that sequence ends with Vision dying – twice.
It also could have simply been a shot filmed for the trailers only – the scores of Wakandan soldiers at their backs is very different than how the battle played out in the film.
Next, another major moment from just seconds later in that first Infinity War trailer: Thor’s “who are you guys?” Response at seeing the Guardians for the first time. That’s not how that awakening went in the film, but it was likely cut simply for the staging of it.
In the movie, the Guardians are gathered around the unconscious Thor. To set up the shot like this would have required them to all scurry from where they were standing to one location – something that would have seemed a little unnatural.
Speaking of Thor, another cool trailer moment from the second teaser didn’t make the cut: the god of thunder hoisting up the newly-forged Stormbreaker in a flash of lightning, while Rocket and Groot look on.
This was likely subtracted for dramatic purposes, but even that is two-fold: One, Thor was on the verge of death before he touched the magical hammer, and two, it makes it that much more epic when he, Rocket and Groot arrive to turn the tide in Wakanda.
While on the subject of new weapons, Captain America’s nifty new Wakandan shield/vambrace things are presented without any explanation in the film – our only line regarding them is Black Panther’s order to get that man a shield.
But in that second trailer, we see Cap standing with the King and looking puzzled at the Wakandan tech – which rather than being one big shield is two smaller ones on each arm. That scene might have initially provided more of an explanation for the weapon than expected.
Another scene that didn’t make the cut was Banner’s reunion with Natasha. We aren’t sure if this is actually what that scene was, but the way it was cut made it seem like this was maybe an expanded version of them meeting up given their past fling – which was glossed over in the final product.
And what about Thanos? Maybe the Mad Titan’s most iconic line isn’t actually in the film. No, he does not say “Fun isn’t something one considers when balancing the universe…but this does bring a smile to my face.”
This was probably edited out for tonal reasons. We know who Thanos is: he’s a warrior, a conqueror. But he’s powerful enough that not many enemies are able to provide a true challenge for him.
Against the combined forces of the Guardians of the Galaxy and the Avengers, he might have actually been enjoying himself. But given the emotion and desperation of those scenes, it might have undercut the tension to have Thanos cracking wise, something he didn’t really do in the film as a whole.
Aside from that, several sequences play out differently – Cap’s slo-mo handshake with T’Challa is played differently with an awkward Banner bow, Loki’s handing over the tesseract appeared more voluntary in the trailer than in the film, and they even edited out certain infinity stones from the gauntlet to throw people off.
