'Avengers: Endgame' Spoilers: Is Adam Warlock in It? Here's What We Know

Speculation that Adam Warlock could appear in Avengers: Endgame cropped up this week, but this isn’t the first we’ve heard of Marvel’s plans for a movie version of the comic book character. Eight hundred years ago Last year, former Guardians of the Galaxy series director James Gunn teased what Adam Warlock’s role would look like in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Prior to his forced exit from the franchise, Gunn had a plan for the cosmic superhero that went beyond Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

With the release of Avengers: Endgame imminent, which hits theaters on April 26, it’s worth pointing out what Gunn said, as there’s a chance it’s still true even now that Gunn and the MCU have parted ways.

Back in May 2018, Gunn, prompted by some frequently asked questions, started a Twitter thread clarifying several fan queries. The question of Adam Warlock, who was teased in one of the handful of mid-credits scenes of 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (he was the big gold cocoon), was answered in its own separate tweet.

Said Gunn: “Adam Warlock will NOT be in Avengers 4 (and I’ve never said he will be in Vol. 3).” Gunn also said that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 would take place after Avengers: Endgame, then still known as just “Avengers 4” by fans.

But with Gunn ousted by Marvel after a stupid far-right political campaign to discredit the filmmaker, are Gunn’s plans for Adam Warlock still concrete? Considering the immense time and preparation it takes to produce interconnected blockbuster movies concurrently, it’s unlikely those plans have changed.

And if there were changes, including Adam Warlock in Avengers: Endgame would still be impossible. Principal photography for Endgame commenced on August 10, 2017, months after the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and wrapped in January 2018, six months before Gunn left Marvel.

Fans are heavily speculating Adam Warlock’s involvement in Avengers: Endgame due to his strong association with the Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet in the comics. While not a household name like Hulk or Spider-Man, Adam Warlock was a very pivotal character in the storylines that inspired both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Originally known as just “Him” and introduced in Fantastic Four #66 in 1967, “Him” was an artificial being given the Soul Gem (it’s poetic giving a synthetic thing a “soul”) to protect an artificial “Counter-Earth.” Later, he earned the name Adam Warlock in Marvel Premiere #1 in 1972.

After several years in obscurity, Adam Warlock returned in a prominent role in Jim Starlin’s 1991 miniseries The Infinity Gauntlet and its sequels Infinity War and Infinity Crusade. Adam Warlock recently played a big role in a new Infinity Gauntlet storyline, Infinity Wars, which was published throughout 2018.

Avengers: Endgame will be released in theaters on April 26.