With Thor: Ragnarok set to debut in theaters this weekend, the countdown for Avengers: Infinity War has come into focus even more than before. Earth's Mightiest Heroes will team up with the Guardians of the Galaxy in a battle against The Mad Titan, and it sounds like Thanos will finally get to kick ass in a moment that we have been waiting for since he reared his head at the end of The Avengers. In fact, directors Joe and Anthony Russo recently opened up and admitted that he would propel the plot of the film forward like a good, old-fashioned heist movie villain. Anthony Russo explained:
With Infinity War, the biggest new element to the movie is Thanos and the fact that he's entering the storytelling in a very bold, strong way, to the degree that he's almost one of the leads. We've shaped an interesting narrative around him that in some ways leans heavily on a heist film in the fact that he's going after the Infinity Stones in a much bolder, successful way than he has in the past. The entire movie has that energy of the bad guy being one step ahead of the heroes. We looked at a lot of movies that had that heist-style energy to them, [and] that brought some inspiration.
We've heard of Ocean's 11, but maybe once The Mad Titan brings his Black Order to Earth, another name for Infinity War will be Thanos' 5? Ok, that was dumb, but you get the idea. Avengers: Infinity War will apparently be structured like a heist film, and like a heist film, the law-abiding heroes will stay one step behind the villain throughout the story.
Ironically enough, this means that Infinity War (likely Marvel's biggest movie to date) actually has something in common with Ant-Man (arguably Marvel's smallest film to date). That heist structure has worked for Marvel before (albeit in a very different way), so we're now incredibly intrigued to see how it will work when Thanos is the one engaging in all of the thievery.
It's also worth noting from The Russos' recent interview with CNET is the description of Thanos' quest for the Infinity Stones as "bolder" than his previous attempts. In that regard, it sounds like Infinity War will really bring multiple plot threads together and show us how all of the MCU films that we have seen thus far (or, at least the ones that have featured Infinity Stones) have tied together in a grand, master plan.
This is important to note because if there's one consistent criticism that has been leveled at Thanos thus far, it's that he hasn't done much in his appearances on-screen. Now with the full force of the Infinity Stones and the drive to cause massive destruction, he may stand as one of the most powerful and exciting villains that we have ever seen from this franchise.
The Avengers will assemble to take on Thanos when Avengers: Infinity War debuts next year on May 4, 2018. Until then, make sure to check out the Marvel Cinematic Universe's latest offering when Thor: Ragnarok debuts in theaters on November 3. Tickets for Ragnarok are already available, so make sure to get yours now!
