Though it’s often cast aside as one of the weaker entries in Marvel’s cinematic universe, Avengers: Age of Ultron is an integral cog in the MCU machine.
Not only did it sow the seeds of division within Earth’s Mightiest Heroes – a conflict that would later materialize in Captain America: Civil War – but it also further explored the concept of the Infinity Stones and, more importantly, what they mean for the fate of the cosmos.
And then there’s the matter of Colonel James Rhodes (better known to you, I and Tony Stark as Rhodey), given Don Cheadle took over from Terrence Howard in time for Iron Man 2. Said switcheroo meant Avengers: Age of Ultron offered a chance for Cheadle’s War Machine to mingle with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and it turns out one of the sequel’s deleted scenes adds a little more context to Rhodey’s Avengers: Endgame dialogue.
As spotted by ScreenRant, a deleted scene from Age of Ultron features Don Cheadle’s Rhodey delivering a message to Black Widow. It’s a typical mission report, but War Machine wraps things up by telling his fellow Avenger to watch her six – i.e. watch your back.
That same line remerges during Avengers: Endgame, when Rhodey and Nebula (Karen Gillan) are sent searching for the fabled Power Stone, only to encounter Star-Lord. Upon splitting up with Black Widow and Hawkeye, Rhodey delivers that same military advice (“you guys watch each other’s six”) before Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner’s Avengers ship off to Vormir in search of the Soul Stone.
Alas, while it was pulled from Age of Ultron entirely, this is simply another example of the Marvel Cinematic Universe harkening back to its own cinematic archives – a process that reached a whole new level in Avengers: Endgame, a film packed to the rafters with Easter eggs and moments of fan service.