The Avengers: Endgame Sequence You Didn't Realize Was Completely Improvised
Marvel Studios' "Avengers: Endgame" was, for many fans, the moviegoing experience of a lifetime. A decade of MCU releases came to a head in the second half of the Thanos-focused battle event, with "Endgame" serving as the fourth installment in the "Avengers" arc. It's hard to imagine that, with an event that massive, anything would be left to chance. Every line must have been carefully scripted, every second of the plot painstakingly accounted for, every look or movement given lots of consideration in order to help weave together the interactions of so many different A-list actors and the complex storylines their characters find themselves in.
And yet, that doesn't seem to be entirely true. On the contrary, there are iconic moments throughout "Endgame" — just like the rest of the MCU — that are totally off-the-cuff, perhaps making them even more worthy of appreciation from fans. One of the most famous examples of these improvisations that have made their way into Marvel movies is Robert Downey Jr.'s penchant for snacking on set – something that has led to a lot of scenes along the way where Tony Stark is munching on some kind of edible item.
Surprise snacks are one thing, but improvising entire scenes is another matter entirely. And yet, there's one moving "Endgame" scene, in particular, that we now know was improvised. It's a charming moment between two characters that made the cut for the trailers, and it fits right in with the rest of the movie without skipping a beat.
Tony Stark and Nebula's time in space was improvised
"Avengers: Endgame" starts with a recap of what happened after the battle with Thanos on Titan. The sequence is brought to us via a montage of scenes showing the survivors, Nebula and Stark, trying to get back to safety on the damaged Benatar. It turns out that most of those scenes were improvised.
In a recent interview with The Wrap, Nebula actor Karen Gillan explained how much improvisation has come to influence her character's MCU career. According to the publication, the MCU actor said, "I've improvised a fair bit of Nebula because I don't know if you saw 'Endgame,' which seems like — (laughs) — That's a ridiculous question. But basically, all of the stuff with Robert Downey Jr. at the beginning was like, that whole montage was improvised."
The actress then explained that a very limited script left her and Downey Jr. to fill in the scene with their content. According to the "Guardians of the Galaxy" star, the only thing on the page was a note that her and Downey Jr.'s characters play football, eat, and try to pass the time while lost in space, and so, both actors decided to flesh the moment out with their own repartée. Gillan also revealed it happened because of Downey Jr., who she credits as "an amazing improviser." She went on to say, "And so there was all this stuff about them playing the game and how much it meant to Nebula that she got to win something. And so she's been slowly getting more improv-y."
While Nebula's spontaneity may be blooming late in life, the maturity cycle isn't done yet. According to Gillan, her character is going to take the improvisation concept up a notch in the third "Guardians of the Galaxy" installment. The actress explained, "This time around, in 'Guardians 3', she's, yeah, she's improvising a lot more lines ... I don't know if they'll make the cut but I hope they do."