'Avengers: Infinity War' spoilers: That post-credit scene explained

Avengers: Infinity War is finally here, so there’s a good chance you’ll have seen it by now.

Juuuust in case you haven’t, Thanos ordered us to stay silent, so we’re going to strap on our Infinity Gauntlet and hit you with a MASSIVE SPOILER WARNING.

Seriously, if you haven’t seen Infinity War, go away. We don’t want your enjoyment of a single second of this film to be ruined by accidentally seeing something you shouldn’t.

Still here? Great! Could you believe it when Yoda showed up and had a lightsaber battle with Mary Poppins? Man, what a sequence.

Okay, that was your final test before we get the real spoilers, so it’s your last chance to click away. SPOILERS FOLLOW.

What happens in the Infinity War post-credit scene?

Infinity War’s post-credit scene was arguably the most significant end sequence since the original Iron Man.

Like that scene, it involves Samuel L Jackson’s Nick Fury. Unlike that scene, it involves Nick Fury dissolving into dirt or leaves or dust or something (it’s hard to tell). Let’s get into it.

We cut from the credits to Nick Fury and Maria Hill driving, while getting the latest intel from the situation in Wakanda, as they find out that it has an energy signature that connects it to the battle of New York from Avengers Assemble. Jackson Fury says he’s been trying to contact Clint (Barton, aka Jeremy Renner, aka Hawkeye).

Suddenly, a car crashes into the pair’s vehicle – but who’s driving? Is it Hawkeye? Ant-Man? No, Maria Hill checks the car, and its empty. A helicopter crashes into a distant building and we realise what’s happening – we’ve joined our heroes after Thanos has clicked his fingers and wiped out half the life in the universe.

Maria Hill disappears into Thanos’ brown cloud (sounds weird when it write it down like that), and we assume Nick Fury is safe, as he takes out a beeper (of course Nick Fury has a pager) to presumably call for back-up. But then he starts to vanish too!

He’s barely got time to utter “Motherfu…” before he’s gone.

Luckily, his hand is able to operate separately from his consciousness (killing half the planet moves in mysterious ways), he’s able to activate the beeper and we see… A snowflake? Another leaf? No, it’s…

…Captain Marvel’s logo (yeah, we don’t blame you if you didn’t know what this was, it’s not exactly the most recognisable branding).

What does the Infinity War post-credit scene mean?

Captain Marvel has not yet appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and will make her debut – played by Brie Larson – in March 2019, just a few months before the release of Avengers 4.

It’s set in the 1990s, so it’s a prequel to pretty much all of the MCU to date (aside from Captain America: The First Avenger, and a handful of flashback scenes), and will feature a young, two-eyed, Nick Fury, played by Samuel L Jackson meeting Captain Marvel.

By activating his pager, Fury has finally decided to push the button on Captain Marvel, just in time for her to arrive in the next Infinity War movie. We’re not sure why he waited this long (he sure could have used her help in Assemble, and Ultron) but, whatever.

We’ll get Ant-Man and The Wasp, then we’ll see Fury and Carol Danvers exchanging beepers in the ‘90s-set Captain Marvel, before Infinity War returns for Part 2, to bring back all of those heroes who are still under contract to deliver upcoming films slated by Disney.

We can’t wait!

Read more
Everything you need to know about Captain Marvel
First look at Larson as Captain Marvel
Concept art reveals Captain Marvel