For nearly two decades, Marvel Studios has created a vast cinematic universe with 37 movies and over 17 TV shows and specials, filled with surprising plot twists. Unfortunately, details about these twists are often revealed ahead of time – through trailers, leaked toys, or even comments from those involved. This means some of the biggest surprises haven’t stayed secret for long.
It’s no secret that major plot points from Marvel Cinematic Universe movies often get revealed before their release. In the past, actors have accidentally let things slip, especially leading up to films like Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. But spoilers also come from unexpected places – toys and merchandise sometimes appear too early, and even Marvel’s own trailers have shown big surprises that would have been better kept secret. This has happened a lot, and here are seven of the most shocking examples.
7) Red Hulk’s Prominence in Captain America: Brave New World’s Trailers Ruined the Twist
The marketing for Anthony Mackie’s debut as Captain America in Captain America: Brave New World surprisingly centered on a fight between Sam Wilson and the Red Hulk, played by Harrison Ford as Thaddeus Ross. Unfortunately, because the Red Hulk appeared so prominently in the trailers, the movie’s attempts to build suspense around Ross’s transformation felt weak, and the final showdown between Captain America and the Red Hulk lost its impact. It would have been more effective to keep the Red Hulk a secret until the movie itself.
6) Marvel Legends Series Revealed Ego Was Peter Quill’s Father
I remember when Peter Quill, or Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), first showed up in Guardians of the Galaxy, everyone was dying to know who his dad was. When Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 finally came out in 2017 and revealed it was Ego (Kurt Russell), it felt… anticlimactic. Turns out, Marvel basically told us months before! They released Marvel Legends toys of Peter and Ego, and the packaging explicitly said they shared father-son qualities. It was a total spoiler, since the toys came out a full month before the movie even hit theaters in April 2017. Honestly, if you were a collector, you already knew the big reveal!
5) Vision Appeared as a Toy Before Making His Avengers: Age of Ultron Debut
We’d already gotten a glimpse of Vision’s eyes in a trailer for Avengers: Age of Ultron, so we initially thought it might just be a sophisticated form for the main villain, Ultron (James Spader). However, a simple “Marvel’s Vision” toy released before the movie came out gave away the fact that this body actually was Vision (Paul Bettany). This was a big moment for the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Phase 2 – introducing a powerful new hero and another Infinity Stone – but the surprise was spoiled beforehand.
4) Professor X Returned in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Trailer
The trailer for Captain America: Brave New World may have spoiled the reveal of Red Hulk, but the trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness did something similar, and arguably worse, three years earlier. After Patrick Stewart announced his retirement from playing Professor X with the film Logan, his return was confirmed in a trailer – a reveal that should have been saved for the movie itself. The trailer not only showed Stewart, but also his iconic yellow wheelchair. The moment would have been much more surprising and powerful if audiences hadn’t known he was coming back.
3) You Could Buy Iron Man’s Infinity Gauntlet Before Avengers: Endgame’s Release
Before Avengers: Endgame came out, a toy release revealed a key plot point, perhaps even more surprisingly than previous reveals like Vision’s origins or Peter Quill’s family. The toy was a version of the Infinity Gauntlet built by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) to hold the Infinity Stones. This spoiled the fact that the Avengers would be collecting the Stones, and allowed some fans to predict the entire plot of Endgame ahead of time.
2) Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Trailer Mistake Spoiled the Returns of Classic Spider-Men
Fans were surprised to see Professor X appear in the trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. However, some observant viewers noticed something odd in an earlier trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home. While the trailer was still trying to hide the appearances of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, a scene showed The Lizard being hit by something unseen, causing him to change direction in mid-air. This led people to realize the two Spider-Men had been removed from the trailer, revealing a major surprise for Marvel fans.
1) Marvel Let Mark Ruffalo Speak in Interviews Before Avengers: Infinity War & Endgame
Despite efforts to keep plot details secret, major spoilers for Marvel movies often leak out. While trailers and merchandise sometimes give things away, it’s often the actors themselves who accidentally reveal key information. Several stars, including Dave Bautista, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Tom Holland, have been known to slip up, but Mark Ruffalo has arguably been the biggest source of leaks. He famously left a live stream running during the premiere of Thor: Ragnarok, exposing early scenes, and he also revealed a major plot point from Avengers: Infinity War – that many characters would die – before the film even came out.
Mark Ruffalo, the actor who plays the Hulk, accidentally revealed several key details about Avengers: Endgame before it came out in April 2019. He hinted at the Hulk becoming more vocal and transforming into Smart Hulk, and mistakenly told fans that Steve Rogers gets married, thinking he was discussing a fake script. Ruffalo has a reputation for spoiling plot details, and fans are now wondering what secrets he might accidentally reveal about his future roles in Spider-Man: Brand New Day and any potential upcoming Avengers movies directed by the Russo brothers.
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2025-12-17 22:43