Avengers: Endgame’s Forgotten Mystery Was Almost Answered in a Scrapped Thunderbolts* Plan

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The movie *Thunderbolts* is setting up a new team of heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it also almost explained what happened to the original Avengers after the events of *Avengers: Endgame*. The recent phases of the MCU (Phases 4 and 5) have continued the story from *Endgame*, introducing characters like Black Widow’s sister, Yelena Belova, and continuing the adventures of heroes like Iron Man, Hawkeye, Thor, and Hulk. While *Endgame* and *Infinity War* have greatly influenced the direction of the MCU, some questions from those films still haven’t been fully answered.

Remember Captain America’s shield? When Steve Rogers passed the mantle to Sam Wilson, he didn’t give him the *original* shield. That one was actually destroyed by Thanos during the battle for Earth. A scrapped plan for the *Thunderbolts* movie involved Valentina Allegra de Fontaine secretly recovering the broken shield and putting it on display at The Watchtower, which was once Stark Tower. This information comes from the book *Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts: The Art of The Movie*, as shared by The Artbook Collector on YouTube.

The Captain America Shield Plan Shows How Powerful Val Is

The plan was eventually cancelled, but it really shows how much power Val has. *Thunderbolts* already showed us she collects items from the Avengers – in the movie, she even has an exhibition dedicated to the Battle of New York, featuring things like Loki’s scepter (without the Mind Stone), Chitauri cuffs, and the large “A” from the Avengers Tower. It’s hard to see everything clearly, but there also seems to be even more Avengers memorabilia in the Watchtower when the Thunderbolts first encounter The Sentry.

Captain America’s shield from the end of *Endgame* is even more significant considering a recent Phase 5 reveal: Nick Fury used Skrulls to collect DNA from the Avengers on the battlefield. It’s a bit strange they would have overlooked the shield, but Val might have arrived to secure it before Fury even did. After all, she created Project Sentry and now leads the CIA, giving her a huge amount of influence within the MCU. However, that power dynamic could shift after the events of *Thunderbolts*, as Yelena makes it clear that Val now controls her.

It’s interesting that Captain America’s shield wasn’t included in the final movie. While it might have just been deemed unnecessary, it aligns with how Marvel has handled Steve Rogers’ story after *Endgame* – keeping things mysterious. Marvel hasn’t officially confirmed whether Steve created a new timeline (the directors and writers have different opinions on this), and they haven’t given any clear information about his current whereabouts. We don’t know if he’s still alive, in another timeline, enjoying retirement, or even… on the moon.

Marvel is deliberately keeping details vague about what happened, possibly even avoiding showing Captain America’s old shield. However, this could change if Chris Evans returns to the role, as rumors persist about his potential appearance in the upcoming *Avengers: Doomsday* and *Avengers: Secret Wars* movies.

Thunderbolts* is now streaming on Disney+.

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2025-09-15 18:44