By Joal Ryan on Mar 04, 2019 01:30 pm
Marvel Cinematic Universe Movie End-Credit Scenes, Ranked
Captain Marvel had best be on her end-credit game. It's too soon to judge the end-credits scenes from that movie, of course, but we sure can rank the rest. For 20 movies, fans have enjoyed teases, gags or clues to the direction of future flicks, all thanks to clever scenes popping up during the end credits. From Iron Man to Ant-Man and the Wasp, we looked back at all 35 MCU end-credit scenes, and ranked them from so-so in the significance department to super entertaining. Take a look. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment Note: This gallery is part of CNET's month-long, cross-brand celebration of the women of Marvel. See interviews with the talent behind Captain Marvel; get updates on future Marvel flicks; vote for your favorite Marvel villainesses and heroines, and more.
35. Jane's mighty happy (Thor: The Dark World) (2013)
To date, the women of the MCU haven't gotten a lot of screen time in the end-credit scenes. So, it's a bit of a disappointment that when Natalie Portman's Dr. Jane Foster is given the spotlight, it's to moon over the return of her portal-traveling boyfriend, Thor (Chris Hemsworth). We mean, it's fine, it's Jane's life; if she wants to moon, she can moon. (But, c'mon...) Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
34. Cap's PSA (Spider-Man: Homecoming) (2017)
This self-aware bit sees Captain America (Chris Evans) preaching the virtues of patience, even when, as he says, what you've been waiting for, such as an end-credits scene, natch, turns out to be nothing more than a self-aware bit. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
33. Howard the Duck! (Guardians of the Galaxy) (2014)
A Seth Green-voiced Howard the Duck interacts with Benecio Del Toro's Collector. Even five years on now, the scene doesn't seem to point to anything larger in the MCU. In a way, that's refreshing. But it also makes it just a throwaway bit. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
32. Mordo doesn't like sorcerers (Doctor Strange) (2016)
There's been too much going on in the MCU for this end-credit scene to feel meaningful yet. It's a set-up for a villain, the "too many sorcerers"-decrying Karl Mordo (Chiwetel Ejiofor), in a sequel that hasn't happened yet. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
31. Tony Stark bores Bruce Banner (Iron Man 3) (2013)
This bit -- showing Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) nodding off during what Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) thinks is a therapy session -- is cute, but it undercuts the real psychic damage Iron Man 3 tells us Tony suffered as a result of the Avengers' Battle of New York. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
30. Falcon knows a guy (Ant-Man) (2015)
Apropos of nothing we've seen in Ant-Man proper, this end-credit scene brings us Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) discussing what to do with perennial troublemaker Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan). Sam, who does pop up as Falcon in Ant-Man, says he "know[s] a guy" who can help, meaning Ant-Man's Scott Lang. This is all set-up for Ant-Man to join Captain America: Civil War, and, as such, is just a twist on the MCU's familiar Avengers Initiative recruitment drive. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
29. D'oh! (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) (2017)
Kraglin (Sean Gunn) tries out one of his dearly departed boss Yondu's Yaka Arrows, and sends Drax (Dave Bautista) reeling in the process. It plays like a cute, if minor, gag in a movie stuffed with five end-credit scenes. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
28. Adam who? (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) (2017)
Defeated Vol. 2 villain Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki) seeks to hold her critics at bay by creating a would-be Guardians-destroyer named Adam, as in the Stan Lee-Jack Kirby character, Adam Warlock, presumably. It's a nice tease at the future of the Guardians franchise -- or, at least it was until James Gunn got fired. Who knows where Vol. 3 is heading now? Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
27. Bucky lives! (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) (2014)
The presumed-dead Bucky (Sebastian Stan), a familiar face in the MCU end-credit scenes, visits a present-day museum tribute to his World War II-era self. It's fine. (But we already kinda guessed Bucky wasn't really dead.) Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
26. Captain America gets the call (Captain America: The First Avenger) (2011)
We get it, we get it, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson): You're recruiting for the Avengers Initiative, and the star-spangled Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is next on your list. Oh, how quickly jaded we become... Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
25. Aunt May! (Captain America: Civil War) (2016)
We get that the main point of this sequence is to tell us, hey, kids, a new Spider-Man movie (Spider-Man: Homecoming) is on the way! But we think the important thing is that it tells us, hey, people, while there's nothing wrong with elderly aunts, there's also no rule that says Aunt May can't be played by the fiftysomething Marisa Tomei. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
24. Bucky in Wakanda (Black Panther) (2018)
If you watch the MCU end-credit scenes back-to-back-to-back, you start to see patterns: Like, how Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) is bad news, and that wherever he's dragged (and he's dragged to a lot of places) bad things follow. So, rather than be entertained by the sight of Bucky meeting T'Challa's sister, Shuri (Letitia Wright), you're just waiting for something terrible to happen to her and/or her homeland. (See: Avengers: Infinity War.) Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
23. The Vulture doesn't sing (Spider-Man: Homecoming) (2017)
The imprisoned Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton) lies about knowing Spider-Man's true identity. What does this mean other than what it literally means? We still don't know. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
22. T'Challa at the United Nations (Black Panther) (2018)
Chadwick Boseman's hero reveals Wakanda to the world, and offers to share its resources. This storyline thread hasn't really paid off yet, but we've still got Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame to go in this life cycle of the MCU. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
21. Tony Stark walks into a bar (The Incredible Hulk) (2008)
This time, it's left to Robert Downey Jr.'s MCU character to do the recruiting for the Avengers Initiative. His mark: Thunderbolt Ross (William Hurt). The end-credit scene, only the second one in the MCU, hits the same note as Iron Man's, but we forgive it (mostly) for being a trailblazer. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
20. Grandmaster's spin (Thor: Ragnarok) (2017)
Ragnarok's deposed and disgraced Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) tries to spin a win from defeat in a funny bit that, if not significant, delivers one of our favorite MCU end-credit scene lines: "Yay, us!," the Grandmaster tells the momentarily baffled inhabitants of Sakaar. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
19. T'Challa time! Captain America: Civil War) (2016)
It's a good thing future Black Panther hero T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Wakanda are introduced here, otherwise it'd be yet another MCU end-credit scene where the co-dependent Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) goes out of his way for bad-luck-charm Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan). Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
18. Doctor Strange, Thor and beer (Doctor Strange) (2016)
Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) keeps the refills coming as he and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) discuss Asgard's version of Bucky Barnes, Loki. It's a funny scene, Cumberbatch and Hemsworth are great together and it sets up Thor: Ragnarok. This is an all-around solid entry. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
17. Suiting up the Wasp (Ant-Man) (2015)
Evangeline Lilly's Hope van Dyne is presented her rightful superhero suit by her father, Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). "It's about damn time," Hope says, and we concur. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
16. Yo, old-school Guardians! (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) (2017)
Sylvester Stallone's Stakar Ogord assembles the gang that, in the comics, comprised the Guardians' original lineup. Ogord's crew includes Aleta Ogord (Michelle Yeoh) and Mainfame (voiced by Miley Cyrus). The scene's a nice nod to fans of the nine-panel world. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
15. The drumming ant! (Ant-Man and the Wasp) (2018)
While the Thanos-thinned world goes mostly silent, Scott Lang's giant pet ant pounds the skins. This is a good, if disquieting, teaser for Avengers: Endgame. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
14. Teen Groot (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. ) (2017)
The rejuvenated Groot is growing up, and going through teen-aged growing pains, as the exasperated Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) learns in this awesome, one-off bit. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
13. Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch! (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) (2014)
The excellent Winter Soldier brings us this chilling intro to the captive twins, Pietro Maximoff (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen). For the time, it stood as further proof that the MCU was committed to mining the Marvel catalog beyond Iron Man, Thor and Hulk. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
12. The Tesseract ... and Loki! (Thor) (2011)
This tease is a one-two punch. One, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) introduces us and Stellan Skarsgard's Dr. Selvig to the Infinity Stone-containing Tesseract. Two, in a great shot (and twist!), Loki (Tom Hiddleston) steps into the frame, and reveals that he isn't as dead as he seemed to be at the end of Thor. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
11. Ant-Man mystery solved (Ant-Man and the Wasp) (2018)
If you wondered where Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) was while half the world's population was getting wiped out in Avengers: Infinity War, then you learn here that he was in the Quantum Realm. Not only that, you learn he's trapped there after his compatriots, Hank (Michael Douglas), Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hope (Evangeline Lily), get vaporized themselves. This is the rare MCU end-credit scene that explains far more than it raises questions: Thank you! Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
10. The Collector collects (Thor: The Dark World) (2013)
This is where the MCU end-credit scene oeuvre definitively moves on from assembling the Avengers to collecting the Infinity Stones. It also begins to set up the world, and characters, including Benecio Del Toro's Collector, that we'll see in Guardians of the Galaxy. All in all, an important clip. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
9. Enter Thanos (The Avengers) (2012)
This clip is a testament to how well-planned the MCU is. Thanos wasn't even a glint in actor Josh Brolin's eye when the genocidal supervillain character, who speaks evil only through his eyes here, is introduced. This scene is the first of two Avengers end-credit sequences; the movie is the first MCU film to feature multiple end-credit scenes. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
8. Hammer time! (Iron Man 2) (2010)
The third MCU end-credit scene is one of the simplest, and still one of the best. It teases the arrival of the Thor with a shot of his hammer. "Sir, we found it," reports S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) from the New Mexico desert. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
7. If the Infinity Glove fits... (Avengers: Age of Ultron) (2015)
Thanos is back in an MCU end-credit scene, and now he's fully realized, and played and voiced by Josh Brolin. The character, who's determined to gather the Infinity Stones himself, means business, and so does this clip. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
6. Famous last words (Thor: Ragnarok) (2017)
Reunited brothers Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) are bound for Earth and enjoying life. "I feel like everything's going to work out fine," Thor says before the scene foreshadows troubles ahead with a literal shadow -- a shadow cast by Thanos' approaching ship. Too on the nose? Nah. It's a perfect lead-in to Avengers: Infinity War. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
5. Dancing baby Groot! (Guardians of the Galaxy) (2014)
The potted twig that's all that's left of Groot after the character sacrifices himself at the end of Guardians grooves to the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back." So long as Drax (Dave Bautista) doesn't turn around, that is. The scene is almost too cute, but in the end it's just totally awesome. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
4. Enter Nick Fury (Iron Man) (2008)
This is where it begins -- the MCU, the MCU's promise of end-credit teases and the Avengers Initiative. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) enters his penthouse pad to find a mysterious stranger in the shadows. "You've become part of a bigger universe," Samuel L. Jackson's S.H.I.E.L.D. leader tells Stark. "You just don't know it yet." Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
3. Stan Lee and the Watchers (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) (2017)
Not only is this one of the best MCU end-credit scenes, it's arguably the best Stan Lee MCU cameo. The Marvel great, playing "Watcher Informant," per the credits, implores the all-seeing, all-knowing Watchers to let him tell them more stories. ("Aw, guys...," he calls after them.) Especially in the wake of Lee's death, there's something special in thinking of the comics great (or, Watcher Informant) up there on the moon, spinning more Marvel tales. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
2. Paging, Captain Marvel! (Avengers: Infinity War) (2018)
A helpless Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) sends out a distress signal to Captain Marvel (indicated only by her insignia) as he disintegrates in the Death Snap. It's an eerie, sad and very effective teaser for both Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
1. Shawarma! (The Avengers) (2012)
The MCU's best end-credit scene doesn't tease, shock or surprise. It just chews. Or, rather, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) just chew on some well-deserved middle-eastern cuisine following the Battle of New York. A tasty touch. Image: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
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