Thanos uses the Soul Stone to suck out the souls of the heroes in Avengers: Infinity War concept art. It’s almost two years since the Joe and Anthony Russo-directed ensemble film hit theaters, but new details continue to emerge regarding it, keeping people talking about it. The latest reveal is a piece of illustration for the film that wasn’t translated onto the big screen.
As Infinity War brought together all pockets of the MCU, it boasted a massive cast which posed some challenges for the filmmakers in terms of balancing screen time. The Russos had to be crafty in making sure that all characters were given their respective time to shine, resulting in the film breaking the heroes into mini groups while keeping the main focus on Thanos. While parts of the battle began in Wakanda with Black Panther and Captain America leading the charge against Thanos’ minions, the Mad Titan was on his home planet of Titan where he dealt with the unusual gang of Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, and some of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Fresh from acquiring the Soul Stone on Vormir by sacrificing Gamora, Thanos was ambushed on Titan by the combined forces of the New York-based and galactic heroes. Apparently, there was one bit of the fight sequence that didn’t make it in Infinity War’s final cu.t As revealed in this concept art created by John Staub, the scene would have featured Thanos using the Soul Stone to separate the heroes’ souls from their physical bodies. Check out the images out below:
This particular scene was even shot, Tom Holland revealed. While doing the press rounds for last year’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, he described what’s happening in this scene. However, unlike this concept art, it sounded like only the Guardians of the Galaxy were affected since he added that Spider-Man had to help the cosmic heroes get their astral forms back in their bodies. While this didn’t make the final Infinity War cut, fans still saw Thanos use the Soul Stone – albeit in a subtler way. As Doctor Strange cast a spell to replicate himself in an effort to confuse the villain, Thanos used the same stone to distinguish where the real hero was so he could target him. Other than that, there’s really no other use of that particular gem, even in Avengers: Endgame.
As of now, the Infinity Stones are no longer present in the primary MCU timeline. The ones Thanos had were destroyed at the beginning of Endgame, while Captain America returned those they got from the heroes’ time heist. Unlike the other five, the Soul Stone is the most underutilized among all the gems since it didn’t pop up until the events of Avengers: Infinity War. It’s curious if Marvel Studios will ever revisit it and the rest of the stones in the future, but for now, it doesn’t seem like it’ll explicitly factor in any upcoming projects.
Source: Screenrant, by ANA DUMARAOG