Is Loki In 'Avengers: Age Of Ultron'?

Update: In a new interview with MTV News, Joss Whedon revealed that Tom Hiddleston did film as Loki for The Avengers: Age of Ultron— meaning when Idris Elba's words were correct. However, the scenes were ultimately cut, because of lame time constraints. As Whedon explained, "The movie has so much. It’s so filled. We didn’t want it to feel overstuffed. I really wanted to have Loki in it, but I understood the decision that there were now too many voices in the chorus."

Previous: Not too long ago, Thor: The Dark World star Idris Elba revealed he had filmed a scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron with Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth. At the time, this seemingly confirmed that the all-seeing Heimdall and Thor's trickster brother Loki would be making some sort of appearance in the highly anticipated Marvel movie — however, when the poster and credits for the film debuted online, only Elba's name was listed the two and Marvel hadn't confirmed the rumor elsewhere. So, is Loki in Avengers: Age of Ultron or not?

(Before we move forward, it's worth noting that I'll be getting into spoilers from the film — so, for all you fans who don't want to be spoiled, proceed at your own risk.)

[START OF SPOILERS] So, short answer: despite Elba's words, Loki does not appear in the theatrical version of Avengers: Age of Ultron. (I'll explain why "theatrical" is an important signifier in a little bit.) And as expected, Heimdall appears in a cameo capacity — though Loki could have easily joined him.

In the film, the Avengers deal with forces they are ill-prepared to face: twins Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. While the brother runs circles around the Avengers with his super-speed, the sister uses telekinesis and mind manipulation as her weapons. She uses the latter to get inside Thor's mind, and make his worst fears come to life. In his vision, he sees Heimdall amid a party in Asgard. His eyes are white, and he laughs that the hero will cause the destruction of his people.

This could mean one of two things: (1) Elba was mistaken (somehow?) or joking with us, or (2) he did film something with Hiddleston that got cut. Hiddleston did say way, way back that he wasn't in Age of Ultron , but that was even before Elba's statements... so I'm inclined to believe the latter.

According to Joss Whedon, an early cut of Avengers: Age of Ultron ran 2 hours and 45 minutes. Naturally, some things had to get cut, and the version that ultimately made it into theaters is 24 minutes shorter. "There's one or two things that I'm unhappy about not having in there, but they're small," Whedon said — and it's quite possible one of these "things" is Loki's moment.

More recently, thanks to snooping from ScreenCrush.com, it was also noted that Amazon.co.uk is already revealing details about the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron DVD and Blu-ray release. In allowing U.K. fans to pre-order copies, the site stated that the home release will feature both an "extended version" and an "alternate ending." There are already a couple of moments I remember from the trailers that aren't in the final cut (mainly that mysterious woman seen walking into a pool of water) but hopefully this means we'll see Loki in Age of Ultron at some point or another...assuming Whedon did, in fact, film a scene with Loki.

Images: Giphy (2)