Warning — this article contains several major spoilers for Avengers: Endgame .
Avengers: Endgame has been in theaters for less than 24 hours, and it has already broken the Thursday night preview record, scoring $60 million domestically. It is on pace to be one of the biggest movies of all time, and it has left fans smiling, crying, laughing — and even a tad confused. Many questions were answered, but some still remain. One of most prominent questions is: Who was that teenage kid in one of the key final scenes?
After the battle with Thanos concludes, we see that the sacrifice made by Tony Stark, or Iron Man, was too much for him to take. Yes, the first character to ever exist in the MCU is dead. His selfless move saved the entire universe, but ultimately cost him his life.
One of the final scenes of Avengers: Endgame shows the funeral of Tony Stark. All of his friends, family, and colleagues are in attendance. The camera slowly pans over all of them, and fans revel in seeing them together in one place. However, there is one face that may confuse some movie-goers.
Diehard Marvel fans, though, will recognize the lanky kid as none other than Harley Keener.
Back in 2013, Tony Stark was dealing with a lot of stress and anxiety as he faced off against the Mandarin in Iron Man 3 . At one point, he enlists the help of a small-town kid named Harley Keener, who was played by actor Ty Simpkins.
Not only did these two help one another, but they also formed a pretty close relationship as friends. Harley hasn’t been seen — or even really mentioned — since that movie in 2013, but in Avengers: Endgame , he makes a sudden appearance. Keener had many Marvel fans scratching their heads before it finally clicked as to who he was.
Harley doesn’t say a word. He’s on screen for maybe 15 seconds. None of that matters, though, as it was a nice added touch to a scene that was already incredibly emotional.
Avengers: Endgame isn’t the conclusion of the Marvel cinematic products, but it was the end of this particular story. For months, the trailers have had Tony Stark uttering that now famous line — “part of the journey is the end.” Iron Man’s funeral is something that truly does spell the end of this tale, but the appearance of Harley Keener shows that every single moment over the last 10 years has led up to it.