Infinity War Concept Art Gives Young Thanos A Very Different Look

CBR

By Drew Mollo

Published Jan 15, 2019

Early concept artwork for Avengers: Infinity War reveals a younger version of Thanos, depicting him in a completely different light.

After Avengers: Infinity War, most people recognize the presence of Thanos, the alien powerhouse obsessed with bringing order to the galaxy, albeit with major sacrifice for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As his conflict finally put him in the direct path of the Avengers and their allies, we were able to see via flashbacks some of Thanos’ backstory and get an idea of who the Mad Titan was before his mission.

However, while the on-screen version portrayed by actor Josh Brolin simply modified his appearance in the comics, new concept art depicts a younger Thanos in a different light.

Artist Justin Sweet, who worked as a concept artist for Guardians of the Galaxy and Vol. 2, Thor: Dark World, Infinity War and the upcoming Avengers: Endgame, posted an image on his Instagram depicting his interpretation of an earlier Thanos. He returns the Mad Titan to the chair we originally saw him in Guardians of the Galaxy, which evokes memories of the DC character Metron from the New Gods, whom creator Jim Starlin said was an early inspiration for the Thanos. Sweet removed the blue and gold armor and replaced it with a golden headdress in a manner that brings to mind how royalty in early civilizations such as the Egyptians was portrayed. In fact, his look and all-around stoic benevolence are also reminiscent of the early portrayals of another all-powerful and near-omnipotent Marvel Comics character, the immortal X-Men villain Apocalypse.

Although the filmmakers went with a more comics-accurate costume, it would have been interesting to see this portrayal of the character in the movie or his earlier appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films.

Avengers: Endgame will arrive on April 26, 2019. Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, the film stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Olsen, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Bettany, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders, Benedict Wong, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Holland and Anthony Mackie.

KEEP READING: Avengers: Endgame Directors Reveal What Thanos Did After Infinity War