Avengers: Endgame - What Does The Ending Really Mean?

11. Thanos Is Dead (But Could He Return?)

When Thanos snapped his fingers, he wiped out half of the universe. When Professor Hulk did it, he brought them all back. So what happens when Tony Stark does it?

He doesn't destroy half of anything, instead killing all of Thanos' army: the Outriders, the Black Order, all of them die, and then there's the Mad Titan himself. In a fitting reversal of the end of Infinity War, we get to see Thanos turning into dust, and the overarching villain of the MCU has indeed gone. The 'other' Thanos, the one who existed in the present, is gone too, having been beheaded by Thor. Whichever one you want to take as the 'main' Thanos, he is dead. Given this is the end of the Infinity Saga, it makes sense that he had to go, since he's effectively the Infinity Villain - but could he return again?

Josh Brolin has said his contract is done on a movie by movie basis, so it really could be the end. However, The Eternals - which will form part of Phase 4 - have links to Thanos (in short, they're like his ancestors), and that could open the door for more appearances from him earlier in the MCU timeline, since we know they're going to be exploring different periods going forward.