Avengers: Infinity War directors Anthony and Joe Russo have wiped their social media accounts ahead of the movie's release - except for one video, which heralds the arrival of Thanos. The big purple supervillain has been in the background of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for almost ten years, but Infinity War sees him finally taking matters into his own hands as he comes to Earth to claim the Infinity Stones, with the goal of wiping out half of all life in the universe. Needless to say, the Avengers should probably find a way to stop that from happening.

The Russos have been an integral part of the Marvel Studios family since they first made waves with Captain America: The Winter Soldier in 2014. They went on to direct Captain America: Civil War, and also directed Infinity War's upcoming sequel, which is currently known only as Avengers 4. Given that the third and fourth Avengers movies represent the culmination of a decade's worth of world-building, there's a lot of pressure on them to deliver something more epic than anything we've seen in the MCU before.

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It's now just a matter of hours before the general public finally gets to see Infinity War, and the Russos have got into the spirit of things by wiping all the previous posts on their social media accounts, leaving just one video:

The implication, it seems, is that Infinity War and its sequel will usher in a new era for the MCU. As part of the effort to avoid spoilers, Marvel is holding off on revealing the titles of MCU Phase 4 movies until after the release of Avengers 4 (whose title has also remained under wraps in order to avoid spoilers). Infinity War has also benefited from an unprecedented level of secrecy surrounding its plot, which means that until last night's premiere, no one outside of the Marvel inner circle knew exactly what to expect. Barring any unfortunate encounters with spoilers online, fans should be able to see the movie this weekend without any real idea of how the Avengers' big battle with Thanos will end.

Of course, the Avengers won't be alone when they go to war. The movie also features the Guardians of the Galaxy, along with Black Panther and the full might of the Wakandan army. Whether or not that will be enough to stop the big purple space guy who likes sitting in chairs, or whether Infinity War will end with Thanos' iconic finger snap of doom, remains to be seen. The Russos' teaser video certainly is ominous, though.

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