Are major characters going to die in Infinity War? The Russo brothers have officially weighed in on the subject, which is on the minds of a great many Marvel fans as the event approaches. Directors Joe Russo and Anthony Russo, who directed Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil war, in addition to both of the upcoming Avengers movies, are arguably the most important directors in the history of the MCU. Or at least will be when this is all over. So, are they really going to kill some fan-favorite, major characters?

Unfortunately, Joe Russo and Anthony Russo aren't willing to give us a definitive answer just yet. Though, when it comes to Avengers: Infinity War, they're raising the stakes in a big way. When asked point blank during a set visit whether or not they're going to kill any characters in the movie, they wouldn't give a direct answer, but their answer doesn't make it sound good for those who want to see the core Avengers team make it out of this movie without any casualties. Here's what Anthony Russo had to say about it.

"We'll say this. We like mature storytelling. We like dramatic storytelling. We like intense storytelling. I think we appreciate conflict, and we appreciate stakes. And without stakes, there really isn't a lot of value to the story. And I think if you look at the Marvel Universe as a whole, as a story that's been told for ten years, you can look at this as the climax. And the stakes will be higher in this movie than they've ever been. Times ten."

On the one hand, it may be tough for Marvel fans, who have taken a 10-year journey with some of these characters, to accept that a few of them may not make it out of Infinity War alive. On the other, the MCU has had a lot of fake-out deaths that begin to get frustrating after a while. As Kevin Feige recently warned, fans who have complained about the lack of commitment to character deaths need to be careful what they wish for.

Robert Downey Jr. also provided a warning recently in regards to characters possibly biting the dust in Avengers: Infinity War. Thanos is a tremendously powerful figure within the Marvel universe and has been built-up for more than five years now. The only real way to pay that off may be to kill a major character. Or a few.

Not only that, but many of the core Marvel actors' contracts are coming to an end after Avengers 4. So from a practical standpoint, it would make sense to send some of them off with a meaningful death, as opposed to just having them disappear simply because they no longer have a contract with Marvel Studios. We'll possibly get some hints as to who may be meeting their demise in the new Infinity War trailer, which is arriving online tomorrow. Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on April 27. This news comes to us courtesy of Cinema Blend.