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As the longest Marvel Studios film, and a fitting end to the Infinity Saga arc of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Avengers: Endgame pretty much had it all. Except, of course, that infamous deleted scene where Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark got to meet the adult version of his daughter, Morgan, played by Katherine Langford. It's a scene that audiences have only recently gotten to see thanks to its inclusion on Disney+ and that would have allowed some closer between the two Starks.
Given the description alone, it feels like that scene should have stayed in the film, but writer/director team Joe and Anthony Russo had a very specific explanation as to why they cut the scene from the final draft of Avengers: Endgame. The reason had to do with the scene not earning its place in the film, with Joe Russo explaining:
Since Thanos had that poignant experience with his daughter in Infinity War, we started playing with the idea that there was something interesting and resonant in the symmetry with Tony and his daughter. The reason we ended up moving away from it is, once we shot it, we began to understand as we were actually shooting it, is that the audience didn’t have a relationship with his adult daughter in the film. They had a relationship with his young daughter but not with his adult daughter. It didn’t feel like it was as powerful as we may have thought so we began to move away from it.
Look, having Katherine Langford’s grown-up Morgan in Avengers: Endgame might feel like a good idea, as it’s the end of Tony’s story, and that little comfort does seem like a fitting note to include that final movement. But the Russo brothers felt it actually detracted from the audience's understanding of the relationship between Tony Stark and his daughter, who is young during the events in Endgame. Luckily, it's now included in the extra features of the Disney+ version of the film, so you can see if you are of the same mind as the directors of the movie or not.
The explanation given to Inverse by Joe and Anthony Russo does make sense though, as the audience was endeared with Morgan as a child, so that’s where the real emotional meat of Tony Stark’s Avengers: Endgame death really stuck. Your mileage may vary when it comes to Katherine Langford’s Morgan informing Tony Stark that what he did saved the universe, but when young Alexandra Rabe’s Morgan tells Happy Hogan she wants a cheeseburger, it’s harder to dodge that emotional bullet because she’s primarily who we know that character to be.
Deleted scenes exist specifically because of moments like this attempted closer to Tony and Morgan Stark’s story in Avengers: Endgame. These are the types of moments that, in previous eras, would fall to the sands of time; but now, merely need to wait for the home video release to bring them to the public’s attention. So audiences can enjoy Tony and Morgan saying goodbye, while also enjoying the version of Avengers: Endgame they fell in love with in theaters.
Avengers: Endgame is available on Digital HD, 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD. Of course, you could also be watching that movie right now with a free 7-day trial of Disney+. And if you’re the sort of person who likes the sound of that, check out the free trial offer and get started right away!
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