When it comes to an MCU movie, best believe we’ll be staying at the cinema until the very end of the credits.
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Major spoilers for multiple MCU movies ahead.
While much has been said about the waning cultural, critical, and commercial power of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), there’s no denying that the film series has left its mark in movie history with its relatively lean 15 years of existence. Just look at how the post credit scene is treated these days. While the MCU did not invent the post-credit scene, they did pioneer it to become an integral part of many blockbusters. Since 2008’s Iron Man, the MCU has used post-credit scenes to serve as little teasers and easter eggs for fans on what they can expect next in the franchise.
These days, it’s practically a given that you have to wait until the end of the credits of an MCU movie to see what will happen next. With more than 30 films and counting in the franchise, the MCU has treated fans to post-credit scenes that had many either gasping or cheering for joy. Scroll down for the few that left that lasting mark we’re still thinking about.
THE AVENGERS INITIATIVE IN IRON MAN
The one that started it all. If Tony Stark outing himself as Iron Man at the end of the movie wasn’t enough, the MCU decided to introduce the power of a post-credit scene with the first on-screen appearance of the MCU’s Nick Fury, who introduces Tony to the Avengers Initiative. Little did we know that it was the start of what would become a historic series of films, not to mention an OMG moment for comic book fans who knew where the story would be going.
THE TEASER TRAILER FOR THE AVENGERS IN CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER
By the time the first Captain America movie came out in 2011, key players for The Avengers such as Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, and Hawkeye were already established. So, the MCU decided to leave a jaw-dropping treat for theatergoers who stuck around until the end of the movie with a teaser trailer for The Avengers, which came out the following year. Epic is an apt way to describe the moment for those who were there to experience it.
THE INTRODUCTION OF WANDA AND PIETRO MAXIMOFF IN CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER
The second Captain America movie dropped a bombshell when it revealed that SHIELD was just HYDRA in disguise, a revelation that reverberated across many projects in the MCU. And if that wasn’t enough, its post-credit teaser gave us, well, a tease on the next Avengers movie by giving the first introduction of Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, who were being trained by HYDRA to face the Avengers. Needless to say, we didn’t see that coming.
CAPTAIN MARVEL IN AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR AND CAPTAIN MARVEL
We have a two-for-one here in these post-credits scenes. Captain Marvel was slated to be a major player once Thanos showed up, and these scenes proved it. In Infinity War, we find Nick Fury and Maria Hill on the verge of being wiped out after Thanos’ snap as Fury turns on a device, which we see is a signal to call Captain Marvel. Fast-forward a year later in the Captain Marvel movie, and we see the continuation of that teaser. As the surviving Avengers decipher the purpose of Fury’s device, we see Captain Marvel appearing and asking them where Fury is. It made us even more hyped for Endgame.
SPIDER-MAN’S IDENTITY IN SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME
Far From Home had its fair share of stunts, moments, and surprises. But we weren’t ready for the movie’s post-credit scene that had our jaws on the floor. When it seemed like all was well for Spider-Man after he defeated Mysterio, the villain had one last trick up his green sleeve and revealed to the world Spider-Man’s real identity. It took over two years to find out what happens next, but it made for a tantalizing set-up for No Way Home.
THAT CAMEO IN ETERNALS
While Eternals remains divisive to this day, there’s no denying the movie didn’t play it safe when it came to MCU movies, and that extended to its post-credit scenes. For starters, we got a scene where Dane Whitman was about to hold the Ebony Blade before he was stopped by Blade. And in a bigger twist, Thena, Druig, and Makkari meet Eros, who so happens to be played by Harry Styles, and his companion Pip the Troll. Whether we’ll see more of Harry though remains to be seen.
THE VENOM SYMBIOTE IN VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE AND SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME
Technically, Venom and its sequel aren’t part of the official MCU timeline. But thanks to the multiverse, they do share a connection, which is where these post-credit scenes come in. For the post-credits scene of Let There Be Carnage, Venom and Eddie Brock are transported to the MCU, where they see J. Jonah Jameson’s expose of Peter Parker from Far From Home. That plotline gets resolved in the post-credits scene for No Way Home when the two are transported back to their universe, but a small sample of the symbiote is left behind, possibly opening the door for the introduction of the MCU’s version of Venom.
THE INTRODUCTION OF THE X-MEN IN THE MARVELS
Ever since Disney bought Fox in 2019, we always knew that the X-Men would make their way to the MCU eventually. And that moment came in The Marvels. At the end of the movie, Monica Rambeau is trapped in another universe as she saves her universe from being ripped apart. In the post-credits scene, we find Monica alive and well with her mother. But it turns out that it’s not her mom, but the mutant Binary as Beast (played by Kelsey Grammar) shows up. We then discover that the X-Men saved Monica, which marks the first on-screen appearance of the team in the MCU. Cue the audience gasps.
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