Is Loki Dead? Tom Hiddleston Addresses Compelling 'Avengers 4' Theory

What if Loki didn't die in Avengers: Infinity War? The self-proclaimed "God of Mischief" is a deceptive, backstabbing, terrible person — so obviously, fans are eager for any hint he may still be alive. The latest bit that could have you re-thinking Loki's death scene is a statement from the man himself: Tom Hiddleston.

When a young fan asked if Loki had truly died in the early moments of Avengers: Infinity War during ACE Comic Con in Chicago last weekend, he said, "Your guess is as good as mine."

Such a Marvel, in-character answer… but what Hiddleston said next was much more interesting. He told a story about fans approaching him in a London park with the same question, who mentioned an important detail the actor himself had previously missed.

"All the other times Loki's 'died' — and there's been a few — he stabs with his right hand," Hiddleston recalled the fans telling him."And now he's stabbing with his left hand."

"That's incredible attention to detail," Hiddleston said.

However, Loki was holding that blade in his left hand for good reason. Thanos' enforcers were on the right, and Loki was trying to be discreet and catch Thanos by surprise. But these are not the only hints Loki may still be alive.

Loki's attempt to "take down" Thanos seemed amateur at best. After all, he knew Thanos could kill him with the slightest effort. Someone as cunning and calculating as Loki would know better than to just whip out a blade to challenge the most terrifying villain ever.

The dialogue between the two is also questionable. Loki offers to be Thanos' guide to Earth, suggesting that Loki and Thanos could still be in cahoots, or that this isn't the real Loki.

"If you consider failure experience," Thanos says after Loki offers to help, a nod back to the first Avengers film, specifically the scene where Thanos tasked Loki bringing him the Tesseract. While Loki failed in that mission, he technically delivers in Infinity War. Loki offers his "undying fidelity" to Thanos' cause, an interesting choice of words given the current, near-death situation.

Thanos seizes upon the word "undying," telling Loki "you should choose your words more carefully," as he proceeds to wring his neck. "You will never be a god," Loki says before his spine cracks and Thanos drops him to the ground. "No resurrections this time," the Mad Titan concludes.

Loki, ever the master of deception, often hides his full intelligence to others. He never lets anyone know his true, usually selfish, intentions. Thanos might not be aware of all Loki's abilities, and the subtext of this "death scene"could be Loki simply playing dumb for the Mad Titan. Perhaps Loki has secretly escaped the Asgardian ship and left an illusion of himself behind for Thanos to "kill." It would explain why Loki simply went up to the most powerful villain in the universe with a tiny blade. "I assure you brother, the sun will shine on us again," Loki tells his brother, who looks on helplessly as Thanos chokes the life from him. In the context of Hiddleston's comments, it's almost as if Loki's "death" was all part of the Asgardian trickster's plan.

If Loki tricked Thanos to believe he was dead, that would be his best deception of all time. It could also be a great benefit to the remaining Avengers for Loki to be alive. He has more knowledge about Thanos than anyone, and if he can stay good for once, he'd go from being one of the greatest Marvel Cinematic Universe villains to one of its greatest heroes.

At the same time, it's also possible Loki could be in cahoots with Thanos, not secretly plotting against him. A lot of their previous interactions happened off-screen. And while Loki did not fulfill Thanos' wishes to get the Tesseract in The Avengers, he technically delivers in this scene. So why would Thanos kill him now? Like Loki points out, he could be a very big asset to Thanos' cause. It's possible Loki didn't create an illusion of himself, rather Thanos created a projection of Loki so that Thor and the Avengers would think Loki was dead and they could team-up under the radar. Perhaps Loki knew Thanos' plan, and made this deal to save himself. Sounds like a classic Loki play.

In either scenario, its entirely possible a decoy Loki escaped the Asgardian ship unharmed. Some, wild fan theories even point to a shadow (with horns) as proof Loki was not actually on that ship. That's a bit far-fetched, but Loki becoming the Avengers' last hope would be an incredible turn of events.

Doctor Strange said there were a few ways the Avengers could win in the future and this could be one option. What's your take? Sound off in the comments.