Readers, be warned! This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for Avengers: Infinity War!
Avengers: Infinity War debunked a number of fan theories about the Soul Stone, but it turned out that one of them was right on the money.
Fans speculated for years about who would find the Soul Stone (Odin, Heimdall, Iron Man, Captain America, and others) and where they’d find it. Some felt that the Sovereign had it; others placed it in Wakanda.
With the release of Infinity War, we learned that Red Skull had been keeping the Soul Stone on the remote, barren planet Vormir. Gamora knew where it was all along, but she had no intention of ever telling Thanos.
But the Mad Titan threatened to kill Nebula, so Gamora was forced to go with Thanos to Vormir. There, Red Skull informed them that in order to claim the stone, the soul of a loved one must be sacrificed. With tears rolling down his cheeks, Thanos complied.
The supervillain also acquired the Time Stone and the Mind Stone from Doctor Strange and Vision, respectively. He was now in possession of all six Infinity Stones. His next move was to wipe out half of humanity with a snap of his fingers, but before our favorite heroes started to turn to ash, Thanos appeared in a dream-like realm and engaged in a touching conversation with the young Gamora.
A number of fans felt that the scene indicates that Gamora isn’t really dead; she’s trapped inside the Soul Stone. Director Joe Russo confirmed the theory at a recent Iowa City High School event (via ComicBook):
Yeah, it's implied [that] it's the Soul Stone. It's all orange around, then he's inside the Soul Stone with the amount of power that it took to snap his fingers – he has this out-of-body experience with Thanos. When he goes inside the Soul Stone, he has this kind of conversation with the younger version of his Gamora…
…It was an attempt on our part – because we don't like two-dimensional roles or three-dimensional villains, every villain is a hero in their own story. And as insane and psychotic and brutal and violent as Thanos is, he's a more complex villain if you go on a journey with him emotionally. He does care for things, and it is complicated for him to execute his plan, and it cost him something. He said at the end that it cost him everything, and that it was the only thing he loved, which was Gamora, which is why we put him back with her at the end. I just want to reiterate with the audience that he does feel true emotion, even though he is a monster.
