Avengers: Infinity War absentees most likely to appear in Avengers 4

Credit: Marvel Studios/Walt Disney Pictures; Avengers: Infinity War (2018) logo

Which Marvel characters that were left off the Avengers: Infinity War roster will show up in the currently untitled fourth Avengers film? Let’s take a look at the 10 most likely to appear. Infinity War spoilers ahead.

Even with dozens of heroes coming together for the monumental blockbuster Avengers: Infinity War, not all Marvel Cinematic Universe regulars receive an invitation to join the super party. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo pull off quite the juggling act of about 40 named characters. They accomplish the feat by carefully linking multiple intertwining plots where adding even a few more guests to the long list could have risked overstuffing the story.

Now we can look ahead to next year’s Avengers 4 and analyze which Infinity War omissions will be included in the finale. Given the surprising Red Skull reveal in Infinity War, any MCU character is fair game. There are various degrees of likelihood that the following characters will show up in Avengers 4. Several are absolute certainties, some are safe bets, and a few are optimistic possibilities.

Captain Marvel and Hawkeye

Audiences have not yet been formally introduced to Carol Danvers, however the cosmic powered heroine is guaranteed to play a significant part in Avengers 4; despite how much screen time Captain Marvel receives in the Infinity follow-up, her level of importance skyrocketed after Infinity War’s ambitious post-credit stinger.

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The scene depicts the catastrophic consequences of Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet finger snap, with Nick Fury and Maria Hill witnessing the mass hysteria and massive destruction that accompanies half the population disintegrating in a matter of moments. Former SHIELD Agent Hill disappears, yet before Fury is also gone with the wind he attempts to reach out to someone with a pager and we are left with a final image of Captain Marvel’s iconic symbol displaying on the device.

The standalone Captain Marvel film is set to release mere months before Avengers 4, and will star Oscar winner Brie Larson. The anticipated 1990’s setting should explain Nick Fury’s connection with Danvers. The two biggest questions are how can she avenge the Avengers and, since Fury has the means to contact her, where in the universe has she been all this time?

Clint Barton is an original Avenger, although he hasn’t always featured as heavily in the MCU as the other five founding members. He most recently took Captain America’s side during the Civil War and landed in prison with the rest of Team Cap.

Hawkeye’s biggest role was in Avengers: Age of Ultron where we discover he has a family with a baby on the way. This revelation is a plot detail that excuses him from not joining up with Captain America and Black Widow as SHIELD falls during Captain America: The Winter Soldier. We learn in Infinity War that when Rogers breaks his team out of the Raft, Clint chooses to go back to his family under house arrest instead of becoming a fugitive with Captain’s Secret Avengers.

Barton’s exclusion from Infinity War was obviously a change in plans since he did appear on early posters for the movie. Jeremy Renner was caught on set dressed as his Dark Reign alter ego Ronin, making his Avengers 4 comeback a sure thing. Given his familial obligations, there is potential for an intriguing scenario where Barton survives the Infinity Gauntlet and his family does not. That could certainly set up a transformation from trusty teammate Hawkeye to the vengeful rogue Ronin.