Tom Holland’s Spider-Man’s death in Avengers: Infinity War broke audiences’ hearts almost 7 years ago, and I can’t believe Marvel nearly replaced him with a different character. Infinity War‘s dusting sequence is the most shocking moment in MCU history. I still remember where I was when I watched half of the Avengers turn to dust after Thanos snapped the infinity gauntlet. It was a haunting scene and more devastating when the credits faded to black. Thanos won, and we’d have to wait a year to find out what happens next.

The Russo Brothers played a cruel trick on audiences, and the character selection made it harsher. People were already shocked to see Bucky Barnes, Wanda Maximoff, Star-Lord, Groot, Doctor Strange, and Black Panther turn to dust, but they had to break the viewer’s hearts one more time by killing Peter Parker. Once he told Tony Stark he wasn’t feeling good, people knew what was coming, and all we could do was watch as Spider-Man turned to dust. It’s one of the MCU’s most effective death scenes, but it almost didn’t make the final script.

Avengers: Infinity War’s Original Plan Replaced Spider-Man With Another MCU Character

Spider-Man Almost Didn’t Go To Space With Tony Stark

Spider-Man officially joined the Avengers in Infinity War, despite objections from Tony Stark. After fighting the Black Order with Iron Man and Doctor Strange, Peter follows them to space, unbeknownst to Tony. The trio meets the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the two groups travel to тιтan where they develop a plan to fight Thanos. However, this scenario was almost different. According to a Yahoo! interview with writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, another version of the script featured Anthony Mackie’s Falcon traveling to space instead of Spider-Man:

“There was one [version] where Spider-Man did not go to space, and where Falcon went to space… And it was fun, it was interesting, it’s always great to have those guys in various situations and there was a lot to do with them in both situations, but we weren’t getting as much emotion as we could if we brought them back to people who know them.”

In the final cut, Falcon stays with Captain America and fights with the other Avengers in Wakanda. While he didn’t go to space, he shared the same fate as Spider-Man, becoming one of Thanos’ many dust victims. It’s interesting to think about how different Infinity War would be with Falcon in space with Doctor Strange and the Guardians. It likely would have reduced Spider-Man’s role and increased Falcon’s, considering Spider-Man would have been stuck in New York. However, the writers made the correct decision.

Marvel Made The Right Call Sending Spider-Man To Space In Infinity War

Peter Parker And Tony Stark Needed To Stay Together

Spider-Man’s MCU journey started with Iron Man. Tony recruited Peter and gave him a suit with enhanced spider gadgets in Captain America: Civil War and subsequent MCU films. He was a mentor/ father figure for Peter, and the two actors had excellent chemistry in all their scenes. Sending him to space was the best idea for both characters, as it helped Peter develop as a hero by working with Tony and by fighting for the larger population, rather than just New York City. It also increased the stakes for Tony because he needed to fight Thanos and protect Peter.

It was also great to see Peter interact with more characters, like Doctor Strange and the Guardians of the Galaxy. It led to many hilarious and memorable lines, such as “Oh we’re using our made-up names” and “You can’t be a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man if there’s no neighborhood.” Also, Falcon was still attached to Captain America’s story, and sending him to space with Tony and the others would have seemed off. He didn’t have a relationship with Tony, so keeping him with Steve Rogers was smarter.

6 Years Later, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Death Scene Is Still One Of The MCU’s Best

Even though Peter returned, his death is still very emotional

It’s hard to take many MCU deaths seriously considering how many characters don’t remain ᴅᴇᴀᴅ. The dusting sequence in Avengers: Infinity War was disturbing, but MCU audiences knew these characters likely would not stay ᴅᴇᴀᴅ. However, Spider-Man’s death was particularly upsetting for two critical reasons. First, Holland’s Peter Parker is very young, making it more troubling to see him react to his looming death. Holland’s performance is great in this scene as he pleads to stay before finally accepting his fate.

Second, Tony has a close relationship with Peter, and it is close to watching his son die with no way to save him. Not only that, but Tony is responsible for Peter being a part of the broader superhero world. We feel for Peter in this scene because we don’t want him to die, but we also feel for Tony because we know how close he is to Peter and how his death will affect him. Spider-Man’s return in Avengers: Endgame arguably received the loudest reaction from the audience, and it wouldn’t have felt as satisfying if his death didn’t happen.

Upcoming MCU Movies

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  Avengers: Doomsday (2026)

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Spider-Man Homecoming 4

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