Every Thanos Appearance in Order

Although the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) will keep on going for years and years to come, and it will have new big baddies for its heroes to fight, it will be hard to top its first. Since the first Avengers movie, Thanos was presented as a big deal.

And in future movies, he was portrayed as an end goal that viewers would get to eventually. It was a thrilling ride; people would get teases here and there of the genocidal maniac, and it would hype up the fanbase.

If you want to relive the rollercoaster, this article will help you out. Here is every Thanos appearance in order. This might be obvious, but heavy spoilers are ahead.

Every Thanos Appearance in the MCU in Order

1. Marvel’s The Avengers
2. Guardians of the Galaxy
3. Avengers: Age of Ultron
4. Avengers: Infinity War
5. Avengers: Endgame
6. What If?

1. Marvel’s The Avengers

While Loki may have been the main antagonist of this movie, it was Thanos pulling the strings. Thanos needed the Tesseract, which was actually an Infinity Stone, and he tasked Loki with getting it for him.

Well, Loki fails which probably didn’t put him on Thanos’ good side. But we don’t see the Mad Titan throughout the movie; we only see him in the credits.

He doesn’t say anything. He only turns and smiles, but every comic book fan was freaking out. It was immediately made abundantly clear that he was the biggest threat the Avengers would ever face.

2. Guardians of the Galaxy

Besides the two movies where he’s the main protagonist, Guardians of the Galaxy gives Thanos the most screen time. He’s not just relegated to an end credits scene; he’s prevalent in the movie. He’s seen working with Ronan the Accuser, the film’s primary antagonist.

The film also introduces his two adoptive daughters, Gamora and Nebula. In this film, it’s shown that they have a strong hatred for him; a storyline that continues in the other movies.

3. Avengers: Age of Ultron

Thanos only appears for one scene in this movie, and it’s in the credits. However, there is plenty of talk about the Infinity Stones. These are essential in Thanos’ plan to kill half of the universe. We also get the introduction of The Vision, who is alive because he’s powered by one of these stones.

And though we only get a few seconds of Thanos himself, his one scene is pretty impactful. We see him get his gauntlet out. This gauntlet is what he uses to control the Infinity Stones; signaling the fact that he’s ready to achieve his plan.

4. Avengers: Infinity War

10 years of movies had led up to this. Finally, the Avengers would have to face Thanos. Fans had been anticipating their conflict since The Avengers, and Infinity War did not disappoint. We see Thanos go toe-to-toe with the strongest Avengers and take them to their limits.

Every interaction was better than the last, and this movie is one of the best in the MCU.

But more important than action, we see more about the character. In this movie, we learn more about the villain’s backstory, motivation, and his relationship with his daughters. This helps flesh out the character, and it makes him multi-dimensional.

5. Avengers: Endgame

This is the end of the line for Thanos. After mopping the floor with the Avengers, he retires. Well, of course, the Avengers aren’t okay with that. So, they re-group to once again take on the Mad Titan.

Funnily enough, he has way less screen time in this movie than he did in Infinity War. But every scene he does get is impactful and unforgettable; they make the best of what they got. Avengers: Endgame is a fitting end for Thanos.

6. What If?

But even though Endgame marked the end of Thanos’ journey, we still see the character pop up in other Marvel properties. He makes a few appearances in the animated show What If?; a show that looks at what could’ve happened in alternate universes.

We see a completely different version of Thanos, and it’s hilarious. It’s definitely worth a watch for that alone.

Not only is Thanos one of the best villains in the MCU, but he’s become one of the best villains in movie history, up there with Darth Vader and Sauron. And his legacy will only get stronger as time goes on.

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