Mid-credits and post-credits scenes have been used in various Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) media, since the beginning of the franchise with the 2008 film Iron Man. The use of such scenes as a whole has changed movie-goer expectations, and has received both praise and criticism. Individual scenes have been widely discussed, ranked, and criticized. In some cases, MCU films have multiple mid-credits and post-credits scenes, or excluded them entirely, and MCU television series have employed them after some episodes. As of Avengers Endgame: Encore (2026), the MCU has featured 92 post-credits scenes across 53 properties.
Background The first post-credits scene involving Marvel Comics characters occurred prior to the MCU, in the 2003 film Daredevil, showing the previously defeated villain Bullseye in a hospital bed, managing to impale a fly with a syringe. Another noted pre-MCU post-credits scene was in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand, showing Charles Xavier / Professor X to be alive after his apparent death by the hands of the Phoenix earlier in the film. This has been described as "Marvel's first post-credit scene".
The MCU's first credits scene involved Nick Fury visiting Tony Stark to discuss the Avengers Initiative. On the decision to include Fury, Kevin Feige said, "We wanted Nick Fury to be the character to intertwine characters, but we didn't want to interrupt the movie." Since then, the MCU has made extensive use of mid- and post-credit scenes (often both) which typically serve as teasers for future Marvel Studios films. For example, the post-credits scene of Iron Man 2 (2010) shows S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson locating a large hammer at the bottom of a crater in a New Mexico desert, thus teasing the release of Thor the following year; while the post-credits sequence of Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) introduces the characters of Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, who join the franchise in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015). Other times, these mid- and post-credits scenes serve primarily as gags, such as the post-credits scene in The Avengers (2012), which has the team eating shawarma in a derelict restaurant in the aftermath of the film's climactic battle, or Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), which features Captain America educating the audience on patience. The Incredible Hulk (2008) does not include a proper post-credits scene; however, its final scene, in which Tony Stark approaches Thaddeus Ross in a bar, is often treated as one. Avengers: Endgame (2019) also does not feature a post-credits scene, instead having the credits end with the sound of clanging metal first heard in Iron Man.
In addition to such scenes attached to films, the MCU has had post-credit scenes in some of the television series, generally after the final episode of the series. The ubiquity of post-credit scenes in MCU properties was such that the producers of the television special Werewolf by Night (2022) felt the need to defend the absence of such a scene, noting that the final scene of the special itself had a feeling much like a typical post-credits scene, and that the characters were left not knowing what the future will bring. The post-credit scene for the MCU television series Hawkeye (2021)'s finale, "So This Is Christmas?", features the cast of the fictional Rogers: The Musical performing the number, "Save the City", first seen in a shorter form in the premiere episode, "Never Meet Your Heroes", with the full version being over four minutes long. The scene was received with sharply divided opinions by fans, as it did not advance any MCU storyline. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) and the television series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022) are the projects with the largest number of post-credit scenes, featuring five, with She-Hulk including them in the first four episodes and the final episode.
Scenes The following table covers scenes featured in films, short films, television series, animated shorts, and television specials produced by Marvel Studios, and organized chronologically by original release date. As of Avengers Endgame: Encore (2026), the MCU has featured 92 post-credits scenes across 53 properties.
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Phase One
+ Year Title Description of scene(s) 2008 Iron Man S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury visits Tony Stark at home to discuss the Avengers Initiative. 2010 Iron Man 2 In a cut-down scene from Thor, S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson reports to Fury the discovery of Mjolnir at the bottom of a crater in a desert in New Mexico. 2011 Thor Erik Selvig is taken to a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, where Fury asks him to study the Tesseract, which Fury says may hold untold power. An invisible Loki prompts Selvig to agree, and he does. Captain America: The First Avenger In a cut-down scene from The Avengers, Steve Rogers converses with Fury at a gym. 2012 The Avengers The Other reports to his master, Thanos, about the Avengers' victory on Earth. Exhausted in the aftermath of the Battle of New York, the Avengers silently eat shawarma in a derelict restaurant. Item 47 Claire Wise spins in an office chair at S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters.
Phase Two
+ Year Title Description of scene(s) 2013 Iron Man 3 Stark finishes telling his story to Bruce Banner, who had fallen asleep near the beginning. Stark starts telling the story again. Agent Carter Dum Dum Dugan sits beside a pool with Howard Stark, marveling at two women wearing the newly created bikinis. Thor: The Dark World Volstagg and Sif take the Reality Stone to Taneleer Tivan, The Collector. After the pair leave, Tivan expresses interest with the remaining five. Thor returns to Earth and reunites with Jane Foster, then the scene shifts to show a frost monster still on the loose in London.2014 All Hail the King In prison, Justin Hammer complains about Trevor Slattery and talks to his lover about the parallels between himself and Tony Stark. Captain America: The Winter Soldier Hydra's Wolfgang von Strucker and Dr. List see twins Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, who are held in custody, experimenting with their powers. Bucky Barnes visits his own memorial at the Smithsonian Institution. Guardians of the Galaxy Baby Groot dances to music, but only when Drax is not looking. The Collector sulks in his destroyed archive with two of his living exhibits: Cosmo the Spacedog and Howard the Duck. 2015 Avengers: Age of Ultron Frustrated with his minions' lack of progress in collecting the Infinity Stones, Thanos decides to get the rest himself. Ant-Man Hank Pym shows his daughter Hope van Dyne a prototype Wasp outfit. In a cut-down scene from Captain America: Civil War, Rogers and Sam Wilson discuss what to do about Barnes. Wilson says he knows "a guy" who can help him.
Phase Three
+ Year Title Description of scene(s) 2016 Captain America: Civil War T'Challa puts Barnes back into cryostasis in Wakanda until a cure for his mental programming can be found. Peter Parker looks at the web shooters given to him by Tony Stark. The web-shooters emit a spider-signal. Doctor Strange In a cut-down scene from Thor: Ragnarok, Dr. Stephen Strange receives Thor, and agrees to help him find Odin if he promises that Loki will no longer return to Earth. Karl Mordo takes away Jonathan Pangborn's magic, stating that there are "too many sorcerers". 2017 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Kraglin Obfonteri plays around with Yondu Udonta's whistle-powered Yaka arrow, accidentally stabbing Drax on his shoulder. Stakar Ogord and Martinex reunite with their old teammates Charlie-27, Aleta Ogord, Mainframe, and Krugarr in Yondu's memory. Ayesha reveals her plans to get revenge on the Guardians of the Galaxy, a being named "Adam". A teenage Groot refuses to clean his room, much to Peter Quill's annoyance. Stan Lee tells a rambling story to an audience of uninterested Watchers. The Watchers walk away as Lee calls after them. Spider-Man: Homecoming In prison, Adrian Toomes encounters Mac Gargan and denies knowledge of Spider-Man's identity. Rogers delivers a PSA to the audience about patience. Thor: Ragnarok Thor's spaceship encounters an even larger spaceship, the Sanctuary II, which belongs to Thanos. The overthrown Grandmaster is confronted by his former subjects in Sakaar. 2018 Black Panther T'Challa speaks before the United Nations, vowing to share his country's resources with the world. Barnes awakes from cryostasis in a hut in Wakanda, and thanks Shuri. Avengers: Infinity War Before Fury disintegrates in the Blip along with Maria Hill, he uses a pager to call Carol Danvers. Ant-Man and the Wasp Scott Lang is stuck in the Quantum Realm after Pym, Hope and Janet van Dyne disintegrate due to the Blip. Lang's pet giant ant entertains itself by playing drums as the Emergency Broadcast System plays in the background. 2019 Captain Marvel The Avengers monitor Fury's pager shortly before Danvers appears to ask where Fury is. Goose climbs onto Fury's desk and regurgitates the Tesseract. Spider-Man: Far From Home In a doctored video, Quentin Beck / Mysterio frames Spider-Man for his murder and exposes his identity as Peter Parker to the world. "Fury" and "Hill" are revealed to be the Skrulls Talos and Soren in disguise, while the real Fury is in outer space.
Phase Four
+ Year Title Description of scene(s) 2021 WandaVision episode 7: "Breaking the Fourth Wall" Monica Rambeau discovers the lair of Agatha Harkness but is caught by "Pietro". WandaVision episode 8: "Previously On" S.W.O.R.D. director Tyler Hayward reactivates "The Vision", with a now all-white, reassembled original body. WandaVision episode 9: "The Series Finale" Hayward is arrested while Rambeau is informed by a Skrull disguised as an FBI agent that a friend of her mother Maria wants to meet with her in space. Maximoff hears her twin sons' cry for help while studying the Darkhold in her astral form in a remote mountain cabin. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 5: "Truth" Embittered by his discharge, and motivated by Lemar Hoskins' death, John Walker forges his own version of Captain America's shield, from scrap metal and his Medal of Honor, painted in the colors of the American flag. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 6: "One World, One People" After receiving a full pardon, Sharon Carter rejoins the CIA and makes a phone call to an unknown person, stating that she intends to use this access to sell government secrets and resources. Loki season 1, episode 4: "The Nexus Event" Loki, having been "pruned" by the Time Variance Authority (TVA), awakens in the Void, and is met with four other Loki variants. Black Widow After Natasha Romanoff's death, Yelena Belova encounters Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine at Romanoff's grave and receives her next assignment to take down Clint Barton, the man "responsible" for Romanoff's death. What If...? season 1, episode 9: "What If... the Watcher Broke His Oath?" In an alternate timeline, Captain Peggy Carter and Natasha Romanoff discover the Hydra Stomper armor with someone inside. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Wong and Shang-Chi speak with Banner and Danvers and discover that the ten rings are emitting a mysterious signal. Wong tells Shang-Chi and Katy that they should go home and get some rest, but instead all three are shown at a karaoke establishment singing "Hotel California" by the Eagles. Xu Xialing becomes the new leader of the Ten Rings. Eternals Thena, Makkari, and Druig are visited by the Eternal Eros, Thanos' brother, and his assistant Pip the Troll, who offer their help.