There is still nearly one year to go until Avengers: Infinity War comes out on May 4th, 2018. It will be the 19th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – a build-up of exactly ten years.

Production has been ongoing for months now, and pre-production has been happening for many years. Anthony and Joe Russo, the critically acclaimed directors of Captain America: The Winder Soldier and Civil War, have been in charge of Infinity War and are confirmed to also direct the still-untitled fourth Avengers movie.

Literally every significant character in the MCU lineup of films will be featured in Infinity War: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man, Black Widow, Hulk, Hawkeye, Nick Fury, Doctor Strange, Ant-Man, Black Panther, Scarlet Witch, Winter Soldier, Falcon, Okoye, Loki, Wong, Maria Hill, Star-Lord, Gamora, Drax, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Mantis, and Nebula. All fighting against Thanos, which is everyone’s common enemy.

As we wait for Marvel Studios or Disney to share more news about the movie, all we can do is cling to the production pictures the cast and crew have been sharing on social media while filming Infinity War, and look for hints of things we might expect once May of 2018 arrives.

This is Infinity War: 15 Behind The Scenes Pictures Every Avengers Fan Needs To See.

15. DOWNEY AND RUFFALO

One of the strongest friendships among the Infinity War cast is between actors Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo. They’ve known each other since David Fincher’s 2007 film Zodiac, which was the project that signaled that RDJ was more than ready for a comeback.

When the Marvel Cinematic Universe started in 2008 with the release of Iron Man, Marvel Studios produced another film that is still technically part of the MCU continuity: The Incredible Hulk, featuring actor Edward Norton as the green superhero. But as that movie bombed and Marvel decided to reboot the character so that it could come back in 2012’s The Avengers, Mark Ruffalo was brought on board, and audiences loved him.

Robert Downey Jr. and Mark Ruffalo went on to work together on Iron Man 3, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and now Infinity War. Science Bros for life!

14. REHEARSAL

But it’s not all fun and games during the Avengers: Infinity War shoot in Atlanta, GA. In this picture posted by the Russo Brothers – the film’s directors who have also directed Captain America: The Winder Soldier and Captain America: Civil War – we see a glimpse of rehearsals taking place at Pinewood Studios.

In a nod to the different colors each Infinity Stone has, the production team wrote “Infinity War” on a white board with a different color for each letter, which we can see at the top of this image.

At the bottom, we see the directors Anthony and Joe Russo chatting with a man who is wearing a motion capture suit. While it appears to be Josh Brolin, who plays the villain Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will be the main antagonist in Infinity War, there is no official word on who that man is.

13. EXCLUSIVE MERCH

Jeremy Renner, who has played Hawkeye since The Avengers and was heavily featured in Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War, is another very excited actor who will be part of Infinity War. His Marvel Cinematic Universe debut was meant to have been in 2011’s Thor, but his work was uncredited.

In this picture, shared by the actor himself, we see an Infinity War­-themed beanie with a “Jeremy Renner” label on top. Everyone in the cast presumably received one of those at the very least, if not also an entire bag filled with merch provided by Marvel Studios.

2012 was a breakout year for Jeremy Renner as he was part of the main team in The Avengers and was the protagonist in The Bourne Legacy. The latter franchise, however, has since gone back to Matt Damon.

12. THOR THE JOKESTER

In this hilarious video that was put together between rehearsals, actor Chris Hemsworth (Thor) pokes fun at the Infinity War directors Anthony and Joe Russo and his fellow cast members.

As he realizes that a Thor action figure is missing from the table, he points out that it isn’t the first time that his character is left out, and mentions Captain America: Civil War (which felt like basically another Avengers movie) as an example. Chris then proceeds to knock over the majority of the toys with Thor’s hammer, but picks up The Hulk’s figurine to take with him, in a nod to their friendship that will be seen in Thor: Ragnarok.

Chris Hemsworth has been hard at work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as of late, since Thor: Ragnarok comes out in November of 2017 and Avengers: Infinity War is released in May of 2018 – only six months apart.

11. DAY ONE

Marvel Studios definitely had to rent lots of trailers in order to accommodate such a huge cast. Avengers: Infinity War is the culmination of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, so pretty much every major character that has been featured in previous films is set to appear in it.

The Russo Brothers and the Avengers: Infinity War cast have been in production mode since January of 2017, which means that filming began before Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Thor: Ragnarok even came out.

In 2018, Black Panther is set to be released in February ­– three months before Infinity War comes out. Then, in July, the sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp will be the first MCU film to be set after the events of Infinity War, repeating what happened during Phase 2, when Ant-Man was released right after Avengers: Age of Ultron.

10. LOCATION SCOUTING

For a film of such magnitude as Avengers: Infinity War to happen, directors Anthony and Joe Russo had to scout several locations that are in line with the characters they will feature and the story they’re trying to tell.

The place in this picture looks very similar to the locations audiences saw in Doctor Strange, and since Stephen Strange will indeed be featured in Infinity War, it would certainly make sense to place the character in surroundings that make sense for him.

While the majority of the Avengers: Infinity War filming is taking place at Pinewood Studios in Atlanta, GA, many other places around the world are being considered as well. Known locations are the Scottish cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, as well as Durham, in England.

9. CAST BUDDIES

The cast of Avengers: Infinity War seems to be having plenty of time to bond. In this picture, actor Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange) appears to be holding a bottle of hot sauce, Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man) is drinking sparkling water, Mark Ruffalo (The Hulk) is just trying to eat a salad, and Benedict Wong (Wong) seem to be trying to steal a piece.

Iron Man and the Hulk have been part of the cinematic Avengers team since 2012’s The Avengers, but what is new is the inclusion of Stephen Strange and Wong, both of whom only had their MCU debuts in 2016’s Doctor Strange.

The photo credits went to Jimmy Rich, who has been Robert Downey Jr.’s personal assistant since 2003 – way before 2008’s Iron Man.

8. A CIVIL WAR TRIO

Because of his praised performance in Captain America: Civil War as T’Challa, otherwise known as Black Panther, actor Chadwick Boseman is already feeling right at home in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In this still video, Chadwick showed three director’s chairs respectively labeled with “Natasha Romanoff” (otherwise known as Black Widow), “T’Challa,” and “Steve Rogers” (otherwise known as Captain America). In the background of the video, we see nothing but trees and dirt.

Actress Scarlett Johansson – who plays Black Widow – and actor Chris Evans – who plays Captain America – met Chadwick Boseman during the filming of Civil War as their characters’ stories intertwined. While no cameos from Black Widow or Captain America are confirmed for Black Panther, the three superheroes will definitely meet in Avengers: Infinity War and fight against Thanos together.

7. WORTHY

In another picture shared by the Russo brothers, who are the directors of Avengers: Infinity War, Joe appears to be dressed like a priest (for some unknown reason) and carrying Mjolnir ­– Thor’s hammer. In the picture’s caption, the brothers wrote, “Worthy”, which is obviously a reference to the fact that only a person who is deemed as worthy can carry the hammer.

Since the teaser trailer for Thor: Ragnarok shows Hela destroying Thor’s hammer, this picture is actually quite spoilery, as it sort of suggests that the hero will get Mjolnir back in time for Infinity War.

There are many guesses as to what the set that surrounds the directors is meant to look like, but there was no official commentary from them or Marvel Studios.

6. A HEROIC WORK OUT

Another interesting friendship in the Avengers: Infinity War cast is between actress Scarlett Johansson and actor Sebastian Stan, who plays the Winder Soldier. In this picture, they’re seen with a group of friends working out and getting fit to film the movie.

Scarlett has been in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since her cameo in 2010’s Iron Man 2, where she was seen recruiting Tony Stark along with Nick Fury. She went on to star in The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Captain America Civil War. She met Sebastian in The Winter Soldier, which was his debut as the titular character in the MCU.

Infinity War will be the Winter Soldier’s first Avengers movie. While the character was seen being frozen in Wakanda under the supervision of Black Panther in a Civil War post-credits scene, there is no confirmation that he will be featured in the Black Panther film.

5. DAY 63

It’s been a very long process to make Avengers: Infinity War. On June 5th, 2017, directors Anthony and Joe Russo shared a picture of the 63rd day of filming. In it, we see lots and lots of white trailers, which house the main cast and crew of the movie during the long days of production.

While the picture provided a bird's eye view of the production setup, it probably came from a drone that was authorized by the Russo brothers. It’s clear that the trailers are surrounded by lots of trees to avoid paparazzi – or any outsiders – spotting the cast dressed as their respective characters, which could potentially spoil major plot points of Infinity War.

After filming is done, the crew goes on to post-production, which, for CGI-heavy movies such as Infinity War, often takes even longer than production itself.

4. A STRANGER ON SET

The most curious thing happened on February 17th, 2017: Millie Bobby Brown joined Anthony and Joe Russo on the directing side of things.

While the Russo brothers identified Millie Bobby Brown as a “guest director” for Infinity War, that was most definitely a joke, since the 13-year-old breakout star from Stranger Things is not necessarily fit to direct the biggest blockbuster in the history of Marvel Studios.

It was definitely cool, however, to see Stranger Things’ Eleven join the production of a Marvel film. It was revealed that Millie auditioned for the part of X-23 in Logan, and she is currently filming in Godzilla: King of the Monsters (which will be released in 2019), so she is most certainly not a stranger to blockbusters.

3. SANCTUM SACTORUM

Apparently, Avengers: Infinity War will feature Doctor Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum, since the Russo brothers even shared a picture of their shooting day in the location. The picture shows Sanctum Sanctorum the way it’s always been: a messy place where Stephen Strange would do lots of reading, but also a charming and aged environment where a Wizard most definitely would reside.

According to Doctor Strange production notes, the Sanctum Sanctorum scenes were filmed at Longcross Studios in the United Kingdom, though nothing would’ve stopped the Russo brothers from building an exact copy of the location at Pinewood Studios in Atlanta, where Infinity War is conducting the majority of its filming.

Since there are reports that the Russos also took production to Scotland, maybe the Doctor Strange-related scenes were shot there.

2. THE SERENGETI

One of the most innocuous yet curious pictures the Russo brothers have shared during the Avengers: Infinity War production is a shot of them in the Serengeti, an ecosystem and geographical region in Africa that houses hundreds of animals within 12,000 square miles.

While the first and easiest guess is that Anthony and Joe Russo went there to film scenes related to Black Panther, it’s important to note that most of the Black Panther film was shot in Atlanta or South Korea, which means that whatever the directors were capturing in the Serengeti might have nothing to do with Wakanda.

Since there is still much to learn about Infinity War and the stories the film will tell, maybe we’re in for a huge surprise that will make us look back and see several signs in these seemingly innocuous pictures.

1. THE TEASER

This 3-minute long Avengers: Infinity War behind-the-scenes featurette has been the most revealing piece of media the film has put out so far. It was presumably filmed on January 23rd, 2017, which was the movie’s first day of shooting at Pinewood Studios in Atlanta, GA.

Actors Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), and Tom Holland (Spider-Man) appear to talk about their expectations of the project. Then, Marvel Studios overseer Kevin Feige describes Infinity War as the culmination of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2008’s Iron Man.

Later, directors Anthony and Joe Russo talk about how Captain America: Civil War has set up the complicated context that Infinity War will inherit – a world which writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus describe as “vulnerable.”

This teaser video was also responsible for officially confirming that the Guardians of the Galaxy would join the Avengers to fight Thanos in Infinity War.

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Are there any hints about Avengers: Infinity War in these pictures that we missed? Let us know in the comments!

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