The history of the Cinematic Universe goes much further than what has been seen on-screen. Fortunately, the movies provide us ample context to get an idea of how far back it all stretches, and when major events not seen in the films, take place.
We have established a timeline narrating the whole Marvel Cinematic Universe, and based on the events exclusive from the movies (not including events from TV shows or Marvel Netflix series). The timeline might appear confusing and is not rigid. We have featured time-ranges with each slide below to give a clear idea of when specific events took place. Exact years that are known to us are also marked here.
Ranging from the creation of the Infinity Stones to the finger-snap by Thanos, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has a fantastic timeline. We are hopeful that this timelinea, which pieces all major occurrences (including some you might not even recall), together to give you a clearer understanding of some character origins and how some events have established the universe until now.
Take a look at our detailed Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline below:
Here is the key which represents the film that displayed the event listed on this timeline. Each of the Infinity Stones has been given a particular color to match its color in the movies.
Big Bang – 1939: Landmark events in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including the birth of the Infinity Stones and vibranium’s arrival on Earth, took place long before other events shown in the MCU movies take place. However, they have a long-term impact on far-reaching stories and incidents that took place in different movies.
1940 – 1950: Steve Rogers turned into Captain America, a development which led to the creation of Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division (S.H.I.E.L.D.) and ultimately The Avengers.
1951 – 1990: A lot of things happen here that end up testing the heroes in the future, such as Ego meeting Peter Quill’s mother on Earth and the disappearance of Janet van Dyne into the Quantum Realm.
1991 – 2000: The decade of 1990s was a great turn of events for the future stories of Iron-Man, Black Panther, and Captain America. More about these events from the 1990s in next year’s Captain Marvel.
2001 – 2009: Tony Stark took on the mantle of Iron-Man, and Bruce Banner turned into the Hulk during the mid-to-late 2000s, which led to the revelation of other superheroes.
2008 – 2011: Thor undergoes challenges which result in him becoming the hero that he is known as, including his first trip to Earth (Midgard). The deportation of Vanko torments Tony Stark, as his son became the evil Whiplash who was full of hatred against the Starks.
2011 – 2012: The Avengers arrive in Marvel Cinematic Universe and battle an alien invasion caused by Loki. The invasion resulted in unfolding of several events that we see in today’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. Thanos also appears on the screen for the first time.
2013: The Reality Stone is kept away in safety…temporarily.
2014 – 2017: A major period for S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Guardians of the Galaxy. While Captain America and Black Widow find that S.H.I.E.L.D. has been infiltrated, Peter Quill meets his father, Ego.
2015 – 2016: The Avengers battle Ultron. At other places, the future Avengers allies, realize their powers for the first time.
2016 – 2018: The Avengers face internal turmoil when they choose sides between Captain America and Iron-Man regarding the topic of working for the government. Their confrontation witnesses the debut of Black Panther and Spider-Man
2017 – 2018: Doctor Strange protects the Time Stone, Asgard is destroyed in Ragnarok and Janet van Dyne is rescued from the Quantum Realm.
2018: Thanos gets hold of all the six Infinity Stones and succeeds in killing half of all living beings from the universe. However, Nick Fury had a backup plan in place.
