The last three Avengers team-ups put Iron Man and Captain America in the foreground, but Infinity War will go in a new direction. Speaking to Fandango, co-director Joe Russo revealed that Thor is the lead hero, driving the main story alongside Thanos.
This balances out Age of Ultron, where Thor had a pretty minor role compared to the other Avengers. It also shakes up expectations for Infinity War, where we assumed Thor was relegated to a side story with the Guardians of the Galaxy.
“I think Thanos has an incredible amount of screen time,” said Russo, when asked which characters have a central role in Infinity War. “I think you’ll find that Thor has a really interesting arc in the film. He hasn’t been at the forefront of other Avengers movies but he certainly has a very important role in this film. So I’ll say, Thanos and Thor.” While previous Avengers movies focused on Earth, it makes sense for Asgard to take center stage against an interplanetary threat like Thanos.
Russo explained that Infinity War‘s two-part structure made it easier to balance the enormous cast. Some characters get a lot of screentime in this movie, while others will have bigger roles in Avengers 4. So if you’re worried about Hawkeye’s mysterious absence, you may just have to wait for the next movie.
The Russo Brothers have been talking up Thanos’ role, and this interview is a reminder that we don’t actually know much about Infinity War. Most fans wouldn’t have guessed that Thor is the main character. Similarly, you wouldn’t know from the trailer that Thanos is the point-of-view character.
“We wanted to tell a story that they weren’t expecting,” said Russo. “The story is told from the point of view of a villain, which I think is also really unique and risky for a commercial film that will surprise the audience. “
This interview explains the surprising order of billing on the Infinity War poster. As a rule, actors are billed in order of importance in the movie, with fame as an additional factor. So Tom Holland appeared first in Spider-Man: Homecoming, but Gwyneth Paltrow (who is very famous and has a good agent) was billed above Zendaya in the credits, even though Paltrow only had a cameo role. People have been analyzing the Infinity War poster for similar clues, noting that Chris Hemsworth received second billing after Robert Downey Jr. Since Downey always comes first due to his star power, Hemsworth could have the most significant screentime in the movie.