If you weren’t blinded by the fact that tickets for Avengers: Endgame are now on sale, you might have noticed that Marvel simultaneously released a new teaser trailer for the film. Clocking in at just a minute, the teaser is packed with new footage, including a glimpse at Thanos in full armor — and a new weapon.
The trailer effectively confirms an important detail about Thanos that we had already suspected from the handful of toy reveals over the last few months.
Warning: Minor spoilers for Avengers: Endgame ahead.
The new trailer is mostly just a lot more standing around and looking cool, but it’s new footage of the Avengers standing around and looking cool — and moody. There’s also Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans) officially burying the hatchet, and this is your reminder that those two have been in splitsville since 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, a whole dang three years ago.
But the teaser also shows Thanos in full for the first time since Avengers: Infinity War. And Thanos has a new toy: a double-bladed, giant sword, like two Buster Swords attached at the handle. With the Avengers more determined than ever, of course Thanos would introduce a new weapon.
The new weapon appears in a single shot where we see it sticking out of the ground against a backdrop of destruction on an unnamed planet. You can also see various Avengers in the foreground, suggesting this could be a major battle between the good guys and Thanos.
Thanos' sword appears in the new trailer for 'Avengers: Endgame', if you know where to look.
Officially, this is the first time we’re seeing Thanos’ sword (at least for those who haven’t explored the deep fringes of DeviantArt). But if you’ve kept up with any of the toy leaks, then you’ve known about the sword for a while. This past weekend, Thanos’ new sword was officially unveiled as part of the Thanos “Build-A-Figure” for the Marvel Legends tie-in line for Avengers: Endgame, which is arriving in stores right about now.
For adults who don’t spend expendable income on toys, here’s the skinny on Marvel Legends: They’re an extremely popular, collector-centric line of detailed, posable 6-inch figures based on Marvel characters. Since the popularity of the films, toy manufacturer Hasbro has wisely tied the Marvel Legends line to every new Marvel movie, producing and releasing figures based on key characters.
Because toy collectors tend to be adults with serious nostalgia, Hasbro rounds out every movie line of Marvel Legends with additional characters from the comics, or characters who were “missing” in previous lines. This is why, for Avengers: Endgame, you can buy Marvel Legends figures of Hercules and Nighthawk, even though those characters are nowhere near the MCU, and Ebony Maw, who was killed in Infinity War.
To encourage collecting, Hasbro has something called “Build-A-Figure.” These are separate pieces of another toy, and when combined they form a new figure. Think of it as a reward for buying all six-to-eight toys in a single line; and you get one more for “free.” For Avengers: Endgame, the Build-A-Figure is Thanos himself, whose new sword comes packaged with the Nighthawk figure.
No, Nighthawk is not in 'Avengers: Endgame', but the Thanos sword he comes in, that's in the movie.
Some other Avengers: Endgame figures of Thanos also come with his sword.
Another line of 6-inch figures, less detailed than the Marvel Legends toys and aimed for younger players, also has Thanos with his sword for 'Avengers: Endgame'.
WonderCon, which took place this past weekend in Anaheim, California, was where Hasbro revealed its full Avengers: Endgame toy line that featured the Thanos Build-A-Figure. But fervent followers have known about the sword even before that, from other unofficial toy leaks and merchandise. A T-shirt company had designs for Endgame that had Thanos and his sword back in December 2018. And as far back as September 2018, other toy leaks had Thanos packaged with his sword. Even the Thanos Build-A-Bear has the sword.
Today’s trailer is just the first time we’re seeing it on camera.
Avengers: Endgame hits theaters on April 26.
