Kevin Feige Explains Why The 'Avengers: Endgame' Title Was Kept Secret For So Long

We all spent months trying to guess what the title of Avengers 4 would be, and some people even guessed correctly: Endgame. After all, Doctor Strange says "We're in the end game, now," after he hands over the Time Stone to Thanos. So why, then, did Marvel keep the title a secret for so long? According to Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, the fevered frenzy surrounding the title got blown out of proportion, but he also thinks keeping the Avengers: Endgame title under-wraps was the right choice.  

More than a few of us were a little underwhelmed when the Avengers 4 title was revealed to be Endgame, but perhaps we only have ourselves to blame for being so disappointed. Speaking with Collider, Kevin Feige said he felt all the speculation surrounding the title was "blown out of proportion to some extent." He's probably right.

But Feige also has a good reason for all the secrecy. In his own words, if the audience was aware that the title for Avengers 4 was Endgame before seeing Infinity War, they might catch on to the fact that Infinity War doesn't have a real conclusion. Instead, it ends with a cliffhanger to set up the next film. And that would ruin the surprise:

"It was a spoiler, because if you knew before Infinity War came out that the next movie was called Endgame, then you know that there wasn't an ending to Infinity War. But that had been the title of the movie from the moment we conceived of doing the two films. In large part, because...it's seeded right there. I mean, it's seeded in Ultron."

The Ultron reference Feige is talking about is a moment in the first Avengers sequel where Tony Star refers to alien invaders as the "end game." Ultimately, this comment from Feige is him confirming that Marvel was trying to catch everyone really off-guard with the Infinity War conclusion. Much was made about the film being a standalone adventure, but we all know now it's a direct lead-in to Endgame. But perhaps we should've known that all along, since the films were shot back to back, and at one point, they were known as Infinity War Part I and Infinity War Part II.

Avengers: Endgame, starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Brie Larson and about 5000 other people from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, opens April 26, 2019.