9 Theories On How The MCU Could End

There are characters and artefacts in the Marvel universe that are powerful enough to unmake reality, from the Living Tribunal to Thanos's fully-stocked Infinity Gauntlet, and the comic book giant might one day use these to wipe the slate clean.

There could come a time when Marvel Studios feels a hard reboot is needed. Iconic roles like Iron Man and Captain America will eventually need to be recast, probably sooner rather than later, and a universe-shattering event revolving around one of these plot devices presents the opportunity for an organic reset.

If the studio has ambitions to keep making films indefinitely, a reboot will be needed at some point. One of the biggest barriers to adapting comic books is, after all, the inaccessibility associated with long-running series.

It's difficult to find a jumping-on point when the continuity stretches back for years, or even decades, and the MCU will eventually have this problem if it keeps churning films out at its current quip. Some form of fresh start will be needed if these movies have any ambition to appeal to newcomers a generation from now.

A reboot could, of course, come years after the current cinematic universe has concluded, but Marvel has the option to trigger a hard reset at any time by having Thanos snap his fingers or the Living Tribunal pass judgement on all of existence.