The launch of Disney+ has paved the way for the release of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Morgan Stark’s deleted Soulworld scene in Avengers: Endgame. And judging on how things panned out in the sequence, it’s for the best that it was left on the editing room floor.

In the aftermath of Thanos’ (Josh Brolin) win in Avengers: Infinity War,  Stark made good on his promise to marry Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) and leave his superhero life behind. When Endgame picked up five years following The Decimation, the couple’s daughter, Morgan was introduced. The film only featured the young version of the character played by Lexi Rabe, but the creatives behind the project intended to debut an older iteration with Katherine Langford cast for the role. As it turns out, like Thanos’ reunion with Gamora (Ariana Greenblatt) in Infinity War after he wielded the Infinity Gauntlet, Stark was also intended to meet a grown-up Morgan following his heroic death.

The part was ultimately scrapped from Endgame with directors Joe and Anthony Russo explaining that the idea was for her to give him the permission to go - somewhat similar to Pepper’s reassurance that they’ll be fine after he’s gone. In theory, the idea sounds poignant and a great way to wrap up the genius, billionaire’s story who was clearly besotted by his daughter. Sadly, with the deleted clip now on Disney+ alongside Avengers: Endgame, it’s clear that Marvel Studios did the right thing to get rid of it.

The clip features a disoriented Tony, who’s back in his civilian clothes, meeting a grown-up Morgan in the red-orange-tinted Soulworld. At first, he doesn’t recognize her until she tells him that he, in fact, knows her well. They talk about Tony’s snap successfully ensuring the future as evidenced by Morgan who shares about growing up happy. Their conversation goes on an odd tangent about how the snap supposedly worked for Tony personally, before he then rambles about second-guessing whether or not he made the right decision to sacrifice himself to defeat Thanos. Morgan addresses her father’s concerns, but she essentially tells him it’s okay to go - although it’s worth noting that the wording was quite incoherent. In the end, she tells Tony that she loves him, to which he replies with the now iconic “I love you, 3000” line.

The effects are clearly not finished in this scene, although some production details, like the inclusion of the teepee hut similar to the one where young Morgan was playing in at the beginning of Endgame, are a great touch (reminiscent of the inclusion of the temple pillars from Gamora’s home planet in Thanos’ Soulworld bit). The problem lies in the overall execution of the whole sequence. The dialog is stilted, with no flow and even babbling at times. Even the “I love you, 3000” phrase, which was so effective in evoking emotions in the few times it was used in Avengers: Endgame, doesn’t have any impact whatsoever.

Arguably the biggest issue in it, however is that there’s no emotional connection between Tony and this older version of Morgan - so much so that it’s so difficult to believe that she’s the same doting daughter that he was smitten with in the same film. The Russos cited this particular criticism as the most common one they got for this scene during test screenings, factoring in their decision to get rid of it. All in all, it was for the best that Marvel Studios opted against the inclusion of this Soulworld scene in the theatrical version of Avengers: Endgame. However, it’s still baffling that Tony’s final “I love you, 3000” - a subtle message to his daughter in his farewell message, was more effective in evoking emotions compared to this two-minute conversation between Morgan and her dad.

More: Avengers: Endgame Proves Hela Is More Powerful Than Thanos

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