Avengers: Infinity War's Thanos Meme Is Now MCU Canon

Christmas, 2024 is shaping up to be a rough one for Clint Barton. Still dealing with unresolved grief over his best friend, Natasha Romanoff's aka, the Black Widow's ultimate sacrifice on Vormir in Avengers: Endgame that cost the Avenger her life, Clint finds himself spending the Holiday Season in New York City with his three kids when we open on Marvel Studios' Hawkeye.

But all is not right in the MCU's Big Apple. Black market auctions, the Mafia, and an overeager twenty-two-year-old named Kate all stand in Barton's path to yuletide cheer.

And if that wasn't enough...

Hawkeye's 'Thanos Was Right' Explained

During a showing of Rogers: The Musical in Hawkeye Episode 1, an over-the-top theater production meant to commemorate the first Captain America's adventures, Clint has to excuse himself to the restroom after the constant references to Natasha become too much for him.

While standing at the urinal, Clint notices graffiti which has been scrawled upon it- Three words: Thanos was right. 

On top of this, a coffee mug that appears in a promo for a future episode of the series, festooned with the same brazen catchphrase.

A No-So-Merry Barton Family Christmas

To make matters worse, mere moments after spying the "Thanos was right" tag on the urinal, a tactless fan approaches him at the adjacent toilet and requests a selfie. Clint rebuffs the man, saying it's not an appropriate time for such a photo, prompting the fan to follow Barton over to the sink to repeat his most undignified ask.

That's not to ignore the implication that there's a sect of Thanos-apologists existing in the MCU. This would be especially irksome to Clint as the Mad Titan ended up indirectly costing him his best friend.

And all of this occurs within Clint's first five minutes on screen in his new Disney+ series. Fans can only imagine what's next for the Avenging Archer.

Of course, this scene has real-world connections as well, with the phrase, "Thanos was right" becoming a popular meme on Reddit and other social media sites in recent years. 

The first two episodes of Marvel Studios' Hawkeye are now streaming exclusively on Disney+.