Would the snap have worked in Avengers: Endgame instead of Infinity War?

New information from Empire magazine reveals that Marvel almost placed the snap in Avengers: Endgame. Would that have been a good choice?

When Marvel fans sat down for the first time to watch Avengers: Infinity War, most probably didn’t know what was coming for them at the end of the movie. Thanos’ snap at the very end of the film came as quite the shock to many fans. Seeing so many favorite and important characters including Black Panther, Spider-Man, and Doctor Strange vanish and die in that way was a huge cliffhanger to the film.

Going into Avengers: Endgame, the Avengers and others will be reeling from the loss of half the universe, including so many people that they knew and loved.

However, according to interviews from Empire magazine’s latest issue featuring Endgame, the snap almost didn’t make it into Infinity War at all. While this huge plot twist and cliffhanger has become a moment that most people into pop culture are aware of, things almost played out differently.

According to Stephen McFeely, co-writer of the films, “We had so much story in those early drafts of Infinity War that, if anything, we thought we maybe shouldn’t do the snap until the end of act one of Endgame.”

But, Marvel Studios’ head, Kevin Feige, felt the ending was an important one to include saying, “We talked about that ending for years and years and years. It was the reason to adapt Infinity Gauntlet. What was the most shocking thing we could do? End the movie with the snap.”

This revelation is somewhat shocking because the cliffhanger ending of Infinity War has become so iconic. It’s hard to imagine the film without this moment and to consider what these two movies would be like if the plot had gone differently. Of course, we still don’t know what is going to happen in Endgame, so it’s hard to speculate exactly on how and where the snap could have fit into that film instead, but it’s worth exploring the question of if Marvel made the right choice.

Without the snap, the ending of Infinity War would likely have been a lot less impactful. Other ending possibilities might have included making it appear like the heroes had won after Thor nearly kills Thanos with Stormbreaker. This could have allowed for a more triumphant ending and excitement, only for fans to be devastated in Endgame when it’s apparent that Thanos actually wins.

It seems that including the snap as the cliffhanger of Infinity War was the right choice from many perspectives. This was a hugely surprising and emotional moment for many fans. It was unexpected and what made the film so talked about and intense. Without that ending, fans wouldn’t have been left reeling and people likely wouldn’t have been as impacted by the film. While it was a brutal ending, it was an effective one from a storytelling standpoint.

Another advantage to including the snap in Infinity War and not Endgame is that it leaves a lot more time to deal with the fallout. The heroes typically face a lot of tragedy in the MCU. Many of the characters deal with mental health issues and have faced traumatic losses. But usually, there’s not nearly enough time to deal with these things in a meaningful way.

Hopefully, there will be some screen time in Endgame devoted to addressing the emotional guilt, grief, and trauma that the remaining heroes are going through. With the snap occurring in Infinity War, heroes like Thor and Captain America can be shown dealing with what happened in a more meaningful way. If the snap had occurred in Endgame, it’s likely showing the emotional impacts would need to be cut down.

While it’s definitely been a rough year for Marvel fans to wait to see what happens in Endgame, it’s probably for the best that the snap occurred in Infinity War so that the story can be given justice.