The Marvels‘ final trailer did all it could to remind us of the good old days of 2019 (yes, the 2020s have been so tough four years ago is now a source of nostalgia), wrapping its new footage in archive clips of the likes of Iron Man and Captain America from Avengers: Endgame and even employing a minor chord version of Alan Silvestri’s iconic theme.
It’s generally assumed that this is a transparent attempt to link the troubled sequel back to Marvel’s glory years, but what if there’s a greater (or, uh, supreme) intelligence behind this decision and the evocation of Endgame has been carefully deployed in order to tease that Carol Danvers might be following in the footsteps of Tony Stark by making a heroic sacrifice?
Although in some ways it feels like Brie Larson’s time in the MCU has only just begun, within the world of the MCU Carol has been saving the universe since the 1990s, she just aided the Avengers in defeating Thanos, and now she’s formed a found family with Kamala Khan and Monica Rambeau. After 30 years of superheroing, then, and perhaps reaching the peak of her career at the Battle of Earth, Carol would be forgiven for thinking about retirement, much like Tony and Steve Rogers in Endgame.
Steve got his happy ending, of course, but Tony lost his life destroying the Mad Titan, bringing his MCU arc to a heart-breaking end. Just like Tony’s sacrifice was a turnaround from his days as a billionaire jerk, Carol’s always been a loner, so if she was to maybe sacrifice herself in order to save her friends in Kamala and Monica it would be an effective way to conclude her franchise journey.
Even if Carol escapes The Marvels unscathed, as we hope, Marvel could always be playing the long game here and Captain Marvel could ultimately get her own Endgame moment in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Secret Wars. It’s important to note that, to date, Brie Larson has no confirmed Marvel appearances to come following this one, with the actress herself casting doubt on her future. So whether it happens soon or in a couple of years, it feels like a cap on Captain Danvers’ adventures is inevitable.