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Elizabeth Olsen Shares Her Initial Reaction to Robert Downey Jr.’s Fate in ‘Endgame’

elizabeth olsen reaction to end game ending

*Warning: Spoilers ahead*

In a lot of ways, we’re still not over it. And by“it,” we mean the fact that Marvel asked us to—spoiler alert!—say goodbye to Iron Man—ahem, Robert Downey Jr.—in Avengers: Endgame, the epic conclusion to Avengers: Infinity Wars.

And since we’re still a bit emotional about it six months later, we jumped at the chance to ask Elizabeth Olsen—who plays Wanda/Scarlet Witch in the films—how she felt watching Downey Jr.’s character’s fate play out in real time. 

“Well, we shot a few different endings,” Olsen reflected during an exclusive interview with PureWow. (She was in town thanks to her partnership with American Express and Delta Air Lines as they celebrate the relaunch of the Delta SkyMiles American Express Card portfolio.) “I assumed that [the current ending was] what they were going to be using, but it was still just a really moving day on set because we were all there.”

As for the moment when things took a turn for Iron Man? “It wasn’t even planned, but I believe [Jeremy] Renner took a knee first and then half the cast took a knee,” Olsen recalls. “It was a very powerful moment because you felt the weight of this franchise that [Downey Jr.] built and starred in. Now, we all get to be a part of something where he was the first.”

Just hearing about this gave us chills. Might be time for an Avengers rewatch... 


rachel bowie christine han photography 100

Senior Director, Special Projects and Royals

  • Writes and produces family, fashion, wellness, relationships, money and royals content
  • Podcast co-host and published author with a book about the British Royal Family
  • Studied sociology at Wheaton College and received a masters degree in journalism from Emerson College