Beloved favourite characters of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) are set to say goodbye forever in Avengers 4.
In an exhaustive article in Vanity Fair on the franchise's past, present and future, MCU boss Kevin Feige teases the ensemble film being "a finale".
The studio is filming the third and fourth Avengers films back-to-back and they're set to change everything.
"[Avengers 4 will] bring things you've never seen in superhero films: a finale," says Feige.
"There will be two distinct periods: everything before Avengers 4 and everything after. I know it will not be in ways people are expecting."
- X-Men, Fantastic Four may join MCU as Disney looks to buy Fox
- Thor: Ragnarok lands some of Marvel's best reviews yet
Of course, he wouldn't say which major characters are being killed off - likely by the supervillain Thanos. But Scarlett Johannson suggests her character Black Widow may be one of them.
"I feel a lot of joy for the next generation... it's a bittersweet feeling, but a positive one," she said.
Johannson's multi-film contract with the MCU is set to expire after Avengers 4, as are those of Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo and Jeremy Renner.
Moreover, Marvel is looking to freshen up the franchise anyway.
Feige says the MCU is "22 movies in, and we've got another 20 movies on the docket that are completely different from anything that's come before - intentionally."
Speculation will be rife as to which main characters live and die in Avengers 4 before it's released in May, 2019.
The third film will be titled Avengers: Infinity War, but the full title of the fourth isn't being announced yet as it's said to be a spoiler.
Newshub.
