Is Infinity War Bringing Back Hela and the Ancient One?

It looks like a couple of major characters may be returning forAvengers: Infinity War. The massive Marvel event movie looks to be the culmination of everything that has happened in the Marvel Cinematic Universe up to this point. That being the case, pretty much every major character is going to show up, if only briefly. And, ifMark Ruffalois to be believed, that may even extend to quite recent and presumably dead characters.

During a recent interview on Michael Rapaport’sI am Rapaportpodcast, the man responsible for bringingHulkto life was asked which actors left “the best impression” on him after having worked with them. He then proceeded to name drop both Cate Blanchett, whom he worked with onThor: Ragnarokand, more surprisingly, Tilda Swinton, who portrayed The Ancient One inDoctor Strange. That’s of particular note because, as far as we can tell, there’s no project outside of the MCU that the two have worked together on. And since Ruffalo recently worked onAvengers: Infinity War, it seems perfectly plausible that he worked with her on that movie.

This relies on connecting a few dots, but it does make sense. For one, Marvel likely wouldn’t want to make Tilda Swinton’s involvement inAvengers: Infinity Warknown becauseThe Ancient Onedied a very meaningful death inDoctor Strange. That said, this also doesn’t mean she’s going to come back to life. The Sorcerer Supreme, aka Benedict Cumberbatch at this point, has access to different planes of existence. That being the case, he could somehow bringThe Avengersinto contact with The Ancient One to help them in their fight against Thanos.

As forCate Blanchett’s Hela? It’s entirely possible Mark Ruffalo just meant he was working with her onThor: Ragnarok. However, those familiar with theInfinity Gauntletstoryline from Marvel Comics will likely note why a character named Hela the Goddess of Death has a good reason to show up inAvengers: Infinity War. One of the driving forces for Thanos is his obsession and love for Lady Death. He’s trying to impress her with a wave of death. Given Hela’s fate inThor: Ragnarok, it’s entirely possible she’s going to come back as the MCU version ofLady Deathand become that motivation for Thanos in the movie.

Again, a lot of this is speculative, but there are enough breadcrumbs that make it seem like Hela and The Ancient One are both going to be inAvengers: Infinity War. Besides, Marvel wouldn’t go out and get actors on the level of Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton and just use them once if there’s opportunity for more. If you want to hear more with Mark Ruffalo, you can check out the full interview on the I am Rappaport Podcast.Avengers: Infinity Wararrives in theaters on June 12, 2025.