The Russo Brothers Clarify Captain America’s Avengers: Endgame Conclusion

Captain America's Endgame poster

MASSIVE ahead for Avengers: Endgame. If you haven't seen it, don't read on!

Avengers: Endgame has been in theaters for nearly a week, and moviegoers haven't stopped discussing every frame from The Russo Brothers' massive blockbuster. The co-directors threw everything and the kitchen sink into Endgame, resulting in a film with even more scope and heart than Infinity War. The movie ended the Infinity Saga forever, and gave touching endings to some of the OG Avengers.

Chief among them was Chris Evan's Captain America, who most fans were expecting to perish in the second war against Thanos. But The Russo Brothers kept the fandom on their toes, and Steve Rogers was given a much happier ending. Following the Avengers victory, Cap traveled back in time to return the Infinity Stones to their proper locations, but he decides to stay in the past and live with his true love, Peggy Carter. Now The Russo Brothers have clarified how that action affected the multiverse, with Joe recently saying:

If Cap were to go back into the past and live there, he would create a branched reality. The question then becomes, how is he back in this reality to give the shield away?

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Does anyone else have chills? While it seemed like Captain America's story was given closure, it looks like there are still some questions to ask following the events of Avengers: Endgame. And that includes why/how he managed to return to the present timeline, and pass off his shield to Anthony Mackie's Falcon.

Marvel fans were happy to see the constantly tortured Steve Rogers finally get the love and companionship he deserves, so few of us stopped to think about exactly why he would return to the MCU's main timeline. Perhaps he had to leave to avoid his younger self thawing from the ice in Captain America: The First Avenger? Or maybe there's a reason why it was the perfect time to pass on the mantle to Sam Wilson.

Related: The First Draft Of Avengers: Endgame Was Originally Very Different

In The Russo Brothers' same conversation with EW, Joe Russo went on to tease more possible story regarding Captain America's time travel and happy ending with Peggy, saying:

Interesting question, right? Maybe there’s a story there. There’s a lot of layers built into this movie and we spent three years thinking through it, so it’s fun to talk about it and hopefully fill in holes for people so they understand what we’re thinking.

If there's one thing The Russo Brothers are good at, it's crafting blockbusters with layers of storytelling. Starting with Captain America: Civil War, the co-directors proved they could balance a large cast, and service each of the characters while telling a larger narrative. Their pair of Avengers flicks are truly remarkable in this way, and the final moments of Avengers: Endgame also set up storytelling possibilities for the future.

Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now. Be sure to check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.