Avengers: Infinity War co-director Joe Russo says the film will not only include the Reality Gem, it will also go out of its way to make sure audiences are able to tell each of the six Infinity Stones apart. Marvel Studios has been building towards the events of Infinity War ever since the first Iron Man was released in the summer of 2008, whether fans knew it at the time or not. And while the introduction and teasing of Josh Brolin's Thanos has been an integral part of building towards the Infinity War conflict over the years, so have Marvel's periodic confirmations/reveals of the Infinity Stones necessary in assembling Thanos' beloved Infinity Gauntlet.
The Infinity Stones each represent a different kind of cosmic power that, when united, allow the user to do basically anything they can think of in the universe. At the moment, the only Infinity Stone left to be introduced in the MCU is the Soul Stone - though it is expected to make an appearance in Thor: Ragnarok. Meanwhile, one of the more exciting Infinity Stones to consider is the Reality Gem, which allows the user to alter reality however they see fit to and break the laws of reality and logic, if they so desire.
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During our interview at this past weekend's San Diego Comic-Con, Screen Rant took the chance to ask Infinity War co-director, Joe Russo how the Reality Stone might be used in the film - as well as how Infinity War will go about differentiating the powers of the individual gems, visually:
"Each gem has its own special power. We had to put a lot of thought into how we would represent those powers so it was clear to the audience. Not only are you dealing with a lot of characters, you are also dealing with the stones, the gems, and there’s a lot of them. So for people to keep track of all of it, we had to get really specific. I won’t divulge how we use the Reality Stone, but we do use it."
For those who don't know or may have forgotten, the Reality Gem was first introduced in 2013's Thor: The Dark World as the Aether, a parasitic lifelike force that could bond with a host, and allow them to lash out with a concussive force, or reach out to convert matter. While the Aether was last seen in the possession of Benicio del Toro's Taneleer Tivan/The Collector, it could also be glimpsed during Thor's mystical vision in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
With the ability to allow the users to control dark-forces, manipulate reality, and even revive the dead, the Reality Gem will be one of the more difficult Infinity Stones for Marvel and the Russo Brothers to fully explain/showcase on the big screen. But based on the Avengers: Infinity War trailer that was shown at both D23 and SDCC already, it looks as though Brolin's Thanos will put his Infinity Gauntlet to good use in the film, which should come as welcome news for the fans who worried Marvel might undercut some of the Gauntlet's power. Now, all that waits to be seen is just how Thanos actually uses the Reality Gem and the rest of the Infinity Stones, to enact his plan of rebalancing the universe.
