Avengers: Infinity War
In October 2014, Marvel Studios announced a two-part sequel to Avengers: Age of Ultron. The project carried the working title Avengers: Infinity War , Part 1. Anthony and Joe Russo signed on as directors in April 2015. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely joined the writing team one month later. Their script drew inspiration from Jim Starlin's 1991 comic book The Infinity Gauntlet. Jonathan Hickman's 2013 comic book Infinity also influenced the narrative structure. Filming began on the 23rd of January 2017, at Pinewood Atlanta Studios. The production used ARRI Alexa IMAX 2D cameras for both films simultaneously. Principal photography concluded on the 14th of July 2017. Additional filming occurred in Scotland, Downtown Atlanta, and New York City. The estimated budget ranged between $325 million and $400 million. This made it one of the most expensive films ever produced.
Thanos acquires the Power Stone from the planet Xandar. He intercepts an Asgardian spaceship carrying Thor and Loki. Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Proxima Midnight, and Corvus Glaive serve as his lieutenants. Thanos kills Loki and fatally wounds Heimdall before sending Hulk to Earth. Hulk crash-lands in the Sanctum Sanctorum in New York City. Bruce Banner warns Stephen Strange about Thanos's plan to destroy half of all life. Maw captures Strange while trying to retrieve the Time Stone. Tony Stark and Peter Parker sneak aboard Maw's spaceship. The Guardians of the Galaxy rescue Thor and travel to Knowhere. They find Thanos already possesses the Reality Stone. Thanos kidnaps Gamora to learn the location of the Soul Stone. On Vormir, Red Skull demands a sacrifice of someone he loves. Thanos sacrifices Gamora to obtain the stone. Wanda Maximoff refuses to destroy Vision initially. The group travels to Wakanda for help. Shuri attempts to extract the Mind Stone but fails. Thanos arrives on the battlefield and completes the Infinity Gauntlet. He snaps his fingers, eliminating half of all life across the universe. Barnes, T'Challa, Groot, Wanda, Wilson, Mantis, Drax, Quill, Strange, Parker, Maria Hill, and Nick Fury disintegrate.
Joe Russo described Thor's storyline as picking up after events from Thor: Ragnarok. Hemsworth consulted with Taika Waititi to carry over comedic and tragic elements. Chris Evans stated that Steve Rogers struggles with responsibility to himself versus others. Mark Ruffalo explained that Banner wants Hulk only for fighting. He feels tired of saving his own skin. Josh Brolin likened Thanos to Quasimodo from Victor Hugo's novel. He viewed the character as born deformed and considered a freak on Titan. Brolin performed motion capture while voicing the role. He did not wear armor for most of the film. This symbolized his growing power as he collected the stones. Tom Holland received coaching from Downey through his death scene. It was not drawn out in the script. Chadwick Boseman improvised war chants with other Wakandan actors. They created the sounds ahead of the battle sequence. The directors were unaware of these chants until later. They felt the moment was incredibly cool. Benedict Wong served as a Master of the Mystic Arts protecting relics. Danai Gurira played Okoye, head of the Dora Milaje. Letitia Wright portrayed Shuri, T'Challa's sister. William Hurt appeared as Thaddeus Ross, U.S. Secretary of State.
Trent Opaloch served as director of photography during principal photography. Industrial Light & Magic handled visual effects alongside Framestore and Method Studios. Weta Digital contributed to the final product along with DNEG and Cinesite. Digital Domain, Rise, Lola VFX, and Perception also worked on the project. Alan Silvestri composed the score from January 2018 to late March. Ludwig Göransson's theme from Black Panther appears within the film. Hollywood Records released regular and deluxe soundtrack albums digitally on the 27th of April 2018. Physical releases followed on May 18. The deluxe edition included extended and additional tracks. Dave Bautista sat in a sauna daily to remove his makeup after filming. Terry Notary provided motion capture for Groot. Sean Gunn acted as stand-in for Rocket during scenes. He used his expressions as motion reference for the character. Indochina Productions acquired footage of Banaue Rice Terraces for Thanos's final scene. The Russo brothers shot back-to-back with Avengers: Endgame using IMAX digital cameras. This marked the first time a Hollywood feature film was shot entirely with that format. Evans and Hemsworth earned $15 million each for their performances.
Robert Downey Jr. partnered with Omaze for a contest offering an Infinity War set visit. A life-sized statue of Thanos stood at D23 Expo 2017 alongside statues of the Black Order. Feige, Joe Russo, Downey, Brolin, Bettany, Olsen, Klementieff, Gillan, Bautista, Cheadle, Mackie, Cumberbatch, Stan, Holland, Boseman, Ruffalo, and Hemsworth presented clips highlighting ten years of MCU films. Fans reacted strongly to the footage. Julia Alexander noted it felt like Marvel finally made the movie they always wanted. CinemaBlend's Eric Eisenberg said the footage left him shaking. Haleigh Foutch described it as dark, dramatic, and utterly epic. The D23 footage generated over 90,000 new social media conversations from July 17 to 23. It stayed in third place the following week with over 41,000 new conversations. By October 16, total social media conversations reached 679,000. The first teaser debuted on Good Morning America on the 29th of November 2017. Josh Spiegel called the trailer carefully deliberate about passing the torch. Scott Mendelson found it damn impressive despite similarities to earlier convention footage. Gael Cooper observed the trailer viewed nearly 500,000 times in its first fifteen minutes. It became the most viewed trailer in twenty-four hours at 230 million views. A commercial aired during Super Bowl LII generating the most buzz. It received 17.6 million views across YouTube and Facebook. Disney announced a charity campaign leading to merchandise releases on March 3. Hasbro and Funko donated $1 million worth of cash and products. Coca-Cola contributed an estimated $40 million to the marketing value.
Avengers: Infinity War grossed $678.8 million domestically and $1.374 billion internationally. The worldwide total reached $2.052 billion. It became the fourth-highest-grossing film of all time. The opening weekend totaled $640.5 million globally. This broke records set by The Fate of the Furious. It was the fastest film to make $1 billion worldwide in eleven days. On the 12th of June 2018, it crossed the $2 billion mark. Deadline Hollywood calculated net profit as $500 million after accounting for costs. Pre-sale ticket records were shattered throughout December 2017. Fandango reported the largest initial 24-hour pre-sales for a superhero film. Atom Tickets noted sales doubled daily the week of release. The film earned $106.7 million on its opening day in the United States and Canada. Thursday night previews brought in $39 million. Saturday gross hit $83 million while Sunday reached $69.2 million. IMAX contributed $22.5 million to the opening weekend. In Russia, the film sold more than one million tickets in a single day. China opened with $200 million locally. India became the first Western release to earn over ₹2 billion net. Brazil saw the highest-grossing release ever for that market. Indonesia, Philippines, Mexico, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, and Mongolia all recorded top performances. The film remained number one in fifty-four markets during its second weekend.
Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating based on reviews from critics. Metacritic assigned a score of 68 out of 100 indicating generally favorable reception. Todd McCarthy praised the writers' ability to balance the large cast. Owen Gleiberman called it a brashly entertaining jamboree. Peter Travers wrote that the Russo brothers never learned less is more. Richard Roeper highlighted Josh Brolin as the most interesting performance. A.O. Scott criticized reliance on other films in the universe. He argued the movie makes little sense considered alone. Stephanie Zacharek said there was no pacing, only sensation and pulse. Justin Chang described it as brisk, propulsive, occasionally rousing. Audience polled by CinemaScore gave an average grade of A. Tony Mitchell watched the film 103 times in theaters setting a world record. Seventeen-year-old Kieran Harvey viewed it 100 times. The ending sparked various internet meme reactions including Spider-Man saying he does not feel good. DidThanosKill.Me allowed fans to see if they would be spared. Reddit created /r/thanosdidnothingwrong where half subscribers were banned. Over 60,000 people watched a live Twitch stream of the ban occurring. At the 91st Academy Awards, the film received a nomination for Best Visual Effects. It also earned Annie Award, British Academy Film Award, and two Critics Choice Award nominations. Empire magazine ranked it seventh in their poll for greatest films of the twenty-first century.
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Common questions
When was Avengers: Infinity War announced and who directed it?
Marvel Studios announced the film in October 2014 with Anthony and Joe Russo signing on as directors in April 2015. Filming began on the 23rd of January 2017 at Pinewood Atlanta Studios and concluded on the 14th of July 2017.
What is the plot summary of Avengers: Infinity War regarding Thanos's quest for stones?
Thanos acquires the Power Stone from Xandar and kills Loki before sending Hulk to Earth. He kidnaps Gamora to learn the location of the Soul Stone on Vormir and sacrifices her to obtain it. The villain completes the Infinity Gauntlet and snaps his fingers to eliminate half of all life across the universe.
How much did Avengers: Infinity War cost to produce and what was its budget range?
The estimated budget ranged between $325 million and $400 million making it one of the most expensive films ever produced. The worldwide total reached $2.052 billion while Deadline Hollywood calculated a net profit of $500 million after accounting for costs.
When were the soundtrack albums released for Avengers: Infinity War?
Hollywood Records released regular and deluxe soundtrack albums digitally on the 27th of April 2018 with physical releases following on May 18. Alan Silvestri composed the score from January 2018 to late March.
Who are the main cast members in Avengers: Infinity War and which actors played key roles?
Chris Hemsworth plays Thor while Mark Ruffalo portrays Bruce Banner and Josh Brolin voices Thanos using motion capture. Tom Holland appears as Peter Parker and Chadwick Boseman stars as T'Challa alongside Benedict Wong who serves as a Master of the Mystic Arts.