Thanos is arguably the best villain in the MCU so far. He is perhaps the most evil, bloodthirsty, and ruthless villain in the universe—so powerful that religious sects worship him as a god.
He has an obsession with the personification of death. Thanos has committed many genocidal acts, and he has clashed with nearly every superhero in his quest to win Death’s favor.
Born approximately 1000 years ago, this villain was killed many times in the MCU. His death was also recently seen in the latest What If…? episode on Disney+.
This marks his seventh demise in the MCU. Even after his death in Avengers: Endgame, he kept getting more credits for his death in Phase 5.
Thanos Has Died Seven Times in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Multiverse Saga introduced alternate variants of many MCU characters, and Josh Brolin‘s Thanos is no exception. That’s why his death was witnessed many times. Here are all the instances where Thanos faced seven MCU deaths.
1. What If…? (Season 2, Episode 1)
Recently, the demise of Thanos formed the basis for What If…? Season 2, Episode 1. But before its premiere, Ronan the Accuser had already killed Thanos with the help of the Kree Universal Weapon. It allowed Ronan to take the mantle of the galaxy’s most feared villain.
2. What If…? (Season 2, Episode 9)
Captain Carter and Kahhori fought Doctor Strange Supreme at the Forge in this episode, dealing with Universe Killers. During the clash, a Thanos variant appeared through a Space Stone portal. But before the variant could damage the two, a Kilmonger variant wearing all six Infinity Stones snapped Thanos.
3. What If…? (Season 1, Episode 5)
In this episode, after acquiring all six Infinity Stones, Thanos comes to Earth but gets infected by the Quantum Virus on the planet. The virus turns him into a zombie.
4. What If…? (Season 1, Episode 8)
In this episode, Ultron becomes the Avengers’ antagonist as he assembles the Infinity Stones. In this alternate reality, Ultron confronts Thanos, who already has five of the six stones. Ultron catches Thanos off guard and uses the Mind Stone to slice Thanos in half.
5. Avengers: Infinity War
In Avengers: Infinity War, Thanos’ first death in the MCU occurred in the early scenes before the time jump. It’s when Thor stabs Thanos in the heart using Stormbreaker.
6. Avengers: Endgame
Why are the Avengers on the list again? It’s because Thanos was killed twice in this movie. In total, he was killed two separate times in Infinity War and Endgame.
Five years after killing their own Thanos, the Avengers faced a 2014 version of him that used time travel. With a brainwashed Nebula, he tried to get the Infinity Stones in the present. But Tony Stark got the gauntlet and snapped him out of existence.
7. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
The Illuminati searches for ways to defeat Thanos in the film. That’s when Doctor Strange decides to search the Darkhold for answers.
It causes an incursion by dream walking, leading to the destruction of an entire reality. The Illuminati killed this Thanos using the Book of Vishanti (often seen as the reverse of the Darkhold).
