"They're gonna bring him back”: Josh Brolin teases the return of Thanos in the MCU

The iconic supervillain of MCU, Josh Brolin’s Thanos is rumored to make a comeback in the franchise as teased by the actor himself in an interview with ComicBook. The news was then brought to focus by the X handle DiscussingFilm, leading to mixed reactions from MCU fans. However, Brolin confessed that he had heard it through rumors and there is no official communication with him as such.

The character who has died multiple deaths throughout his journey in MCU’s multiverse and in the What If…? universe, may find it difficult to explain a return. Netizens believe that the MCU is taking an easy way out to look for a grand villain of Phase 6 after the exit of Kang the Conqueror actor Jonathan Majors. However, there is no official word from the studio and the production team on this yet.

The tweet that created a sensation among MCU fans (Image via X@DiscussingFilm)

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Josh Brolin hints at Thanos' comeback as the mega villain in MCU Phase 6

Brolin hinted in his interview with ComicBook, that the legendary MCU villain who died twice in Avengers: Endgame may make a comeback in the canon timeline for Phases 5 and 6. The actor was speaking to the media house about his role as Gurney Halleck the Denis Villeneuve epic in Dune: Part Two.

The actor specifically mentioned hearing about the villain’s return through the “grapevine”, suggesting no official base to it. However, coming out with a suggestion during an interview sets many balls rolling for fans after Jonathan Majors' exit.

Rumors are rife about Thanos' comeback (Image via Marvel Studios)

While MCU fans have shown mixed reactions to the news, the Marvel office has not yet reacted to the rumors or Brolin’s teases. While many whispers about Doctor Doom had raised the hopes of fans, again the studios have remained tight-lipped about their plans.

MCU fans and viewers will remember Thanos’s grand death along with Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame. In the movie, he died twice, in two timelines, while in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the Illuminati killed him. Even in the alternate version of the What If…? series, he died multiple deaths.

Brolin admitted,

“And there’s the What If…? series and that’s a different kind of Thanos and all that. But I don’t know in the Marvel world whether they are going to bring him back, but I didn’t know that he was the most killed-off Marvel villain…”

Some fan reactions to DiscussingFilm Tweet (Image via X@DiscussingFilm)

Fans reactions to the X handle of MCU News and Updates (Image via X@HolyfieldM5)

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Secret Invasion may have set up Thanos’s return

While Secret Invasion, the Disney+ show that landed between June 21, 2023, and July 26, 2023, didn’t do very well for viewership, it set a back story for Thanos to return if Marvel wanted it. After the Battle on Earth was over, Marvel’s Nick Fury, portrayed by Samuel Jackson, sent a team of Skrulls to collect DNA from the battleground. Stored in a single vial, the experiment was called The Harvest.

While as Nick pointed out, everybody involved in the battle may have their DNA in the vial, the mad Titan could possibly be one of them. Considering the future MCU projects may be Skrull-focussed, having the villain’s powers harvested out of the vial of DNAs could spell his return to the MCU.

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In conclusion: Will the mad Titan return to the MCU?

Marvel Studios is not responding to rumors about Thanos' return. (Image via Marvel Studios)

As mentioned before, there is no official word on the subject and Marvel Studios is secretive about their MCU plans as of now. While actor Josh Brolin has hinted at the possibility of his return to the canon timeline, he also pointed out that they were rumors.