Avengers: Infinity War: Who Is Most Likely To Die, Ranked

The Avengers are going to war! The first trailer for Avengers: Infinity War dropped earlier today, bringing with it our first official look at all the action Marvel Studios has in store. The film is set to include the largest assemblage of Avengers to date, surpassing even Captain America: Civil War’s impressively huge roster. But sadly, with the stakes so high and the cast so big, there’s no way everyone will make it out alive.

5. Drax

Initially, Drax may seem an unlikely choice to die in Infinity War given that he's only appeared in two films - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 - and his death, while impactful, wouldn’t be as devastating a loss as some others. But of all the MCU's characters there's no one who has more reason to want Thanos dead than him (with perhaps the exception of Gamora and Nebula), making Drax a prime candidate to get in the Mad Titan’s face. If you'll recall, for the majority of the first Guardians, Drax is hellbent on killing Ronan the Accuser as revenge for murdering his wife and daughter. Later, when he learns that Ronan was acting on someone else’s orders - Thanos' orders to be exact - killing him becomes Drax’s "real mission."

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 didn't dwell too heavily on Drax's thirst for vengeance, making his role even more comedic than it was the first time around, but there is a moment meant to remind us of the pain Thanos caused him. It’s one of his scenes with the empath, Mantis in which he shares with her the anguish he feels for his lost family. She completely breaks down, while Drax is solemn, almost determined when recalling his grief. He has not forgotten who’s really responsible for their deaths, and you better believe that given the chance, Drax will make his grievances with Thanos known.

Sadly, it’s very unlikely that Drax will the be one to kill Thanos, so any meeting between them will almost certainly end with Drax’s death. It’d be a tragic end, to be sure, but hopefully also a heroic one in where he sacrifices himself to save his new family.

4. Vision

Another popular choice to bite the dust in Infinity War is Vision, with the film’s trailer going so far as to tease a potential death scene for the android. He’s a newcomer to the MCU, even more so than Drax, which also makes it seem unlikely the Russos would kill off Vision after only just introducing him in Avengers: Age of Ultron. However, working against Vision is the fact he has something Thanos really, really wants - the Mind Stone.

As we saw in Age of Ultron, Vision is created when the android that was to become Ultron’s new host is bonded with the salvaged J.A.R.V.I.S. program, infused with the Mind Stone, then supercharged by Thor’s lightning. It’s a cosmic cocktail that results in Vision being one of - if not the - strongest Avenger (sorry, Hulk). Along with super strength, he can fly, phase through basically anything, and vaporize his enemies with a blast from the Infinity Stone implanted in his forehead.

Those powers alone make him someone Thanos is likely to kill, eliminating one of The Avenger’s heaviest hitters, but it’s his having the Mind Stone - and it being linked with granting him life - that makes is very likely Vision will die at Thanos’ hand in Infinity War.

3. Loki

As we all suspected, Loki did indeed swipe the Tesseract when fleeing Asgard at the end of Thor: Ragnarok, with the Infinity War trailer outright confirming this by showing him with the glowing blue box in hand. From there, the Space Stone somehow find its way to Thanos since his Infinity Gauntlet is seen sporting the blue stone (alongside the purple Power Stone) later in the trailer. So how does it get there?

That shot of Loki with the Tesseract is likely meant to suggest he again betrays everyone and hands the Space Stone over to Thanos. Loki is a no good trickster who only looks out for himself, so why not? But then, Loki’s arc in Ragnarok is a redemptive one, with he and Thor coming together to save the people of Asgard. Would he turn on his brother after having just regained his trust? Maybe, but it’s just as possible his loyalty to Thanos is all an illusion, using the Tesseract to buy time for Thor and the other Avengers to come up with a plan of attack. Loki is nothing if not a deceitful character, but perhaps he finds a way to use his trickery for good.

It’s hard to know exactly what Loki’s angle will be with the Tesseract, but either way it’s almost certain to end with Thanos killing him - whether out of spite for losing the Space Stone in the first place, or because Thanos realizes Loki is playing him. Get ready for thousands of fans to cry out if this beloved character dies, but given Loki’s strong ties with Thanos and his penchant for double-crossing, the Mad Titan is likely to be well and done with the God of Mischief’s games come Infinity War.

2. Tony Stark/Iron Man

All the deaths listed here would be significant, but none would rattle the MCU to its very core like the death of an original Avenger - and none more so than the character who started it all: Tony Stark AKA Iron Man. He is the MCU’s most popular character, their most enduring and most prolific. Killing Tony Stark would send a shockwave through The Avengers from which they may never recover.

Tony Stark/Iron Man is so strongly associated with the MCU it’s almost unimaginable to think it could continue without him. Of course, that’s an inevitability whether he dies in Infinity War or not. Robert Downey Jr. has by now starred in three Iron Man films, two Avengers, and one Captain America movie. He even had a small though no less significant role in Spider-Man: Homecoming. At 52 years young, it’s impossible for him to play the role forever and it’s ludicrous to think Marvel would recast. Plus, his contract is winding down, and it’s a very real possibility RDJ won’t want to renew - not too mention, Marvel may not be able to afford him.

Moreover, there’s not a whole lot left to do with Tony’s character. He’s suffered defeats, risen to the occasion when called, and even begun grooming a new generation of heroes. So if Infinity War is to include a major death with huge impact, there’s no one more ripe for the chopping block than Tony Stark.

1. Steve Rogers/Captain America

Except, of course, for another long-standing and integral member of the MCU - Steve Rogers AKA Captain America. In a sense, the MCU only gelled once Steve came on the scene, acting like a final piece of The Avengers puzzle. If Infinity War is meant as the beginning of the end for the MCU as we know it, then there’s something poetic about the last one in being the first one out. Plus, if this next phase of the MCU needs a major death to kick it into high gear, killing the most highly regarded and respected Avenger would definitely send that message.

Beyond how devastating the death of a character as wholly good and heroic as Captain America would be, it is a death that paves the way for the future. In the comics, there’s a precedent for others to take up the mantle of Captain America following Steve’s death, with both Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson taking on the role. In the MCU, Wilson seems pretty attached to those wings, but Barnes is a character who could use a reinvention. Were Bucky to become the new Captain America, as he does for a time in the comics, it would not only allow him to atone for past sins but carry on the memory and mission of his dearest friend.

Additionally, like Downey Jr., Chris Evans’ contract is up soon and he’s made no secret about wanting to move on from playing superheroes and do other things, like directing and producing. A heroic death, one where he holds off Thanos until his very last breath, allowing his friends to escape, would be a poignant send off for this mighty Avenger.