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Secret Invasion: So [SPOILER] Was a Skrull Since "Civil War," Huh?

Secret Invasion Director Ali Selim confirmed that [SPOILER] was a Skrull since Captain America: Civil War - and MCU fans aren't thrilled.

So, how about that Samuel L. Jackson & Ben Mendelsohn-starring Secret Invasion from Marvel Studios & Disney+… am I right? Needless to say, folks have a lot of things to say about the recently-wrapped streaming series – and most of it? Well, let's just say that we're really glad that Tom Hiddleston and Loki are making their way back to our screens this October. But perhaps one of the biggest red flags has to do with Don Cheadle's James "Rhodey" Rhodes and what the series is saying about him and his place in the MCU. At this point, we're throwing on the "MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!"  sign and throwing down an image spoiler buffer before we go any further. See you on the other side…

As we learned before the finale, Cheadle's Rhodes was actually the female Skrull Raava (played by Nisha Aaliya in Skrull form) – which meant that the real Rhodes hasn't been in play in the MCU for some stretch of time – but how long? A number of fans pointed to a huge clue in the finale, with the real Rhodes wearing a hospital gown when he's rescued from Skrull captivity – with the ten-ton implication being that Rhodes was snatched after his spinal cord injury in Captain America: Civil War. Director & EP Ali Selim was asked if that was meant to be a "Civil War" hint, to which their response was pretty clear: "Yep." So if you're looking at your MCU scorecard, that would mean we had Skrull Rhodes for Avengers: Infinity War & Avengers: Endgame and Disney+'s The Falcon and The Winter Soldier – and that the Real Rhodes is unaware of anything that's happened since "Civil War."

Speaking with ComicBook.com, Selim shared a bit more regarding Real Rhodes, Skrull Rhodes & the MCU timelines. "A lot of people have asked about, 'Definitively, when did Rhodey…?' I think his legs not working in the end of episode six and him being in the hospital gown points to [Captain America: Civil War]. And, from there, does it have to be definitive, or is it more fun for the audience to go back and revisit every moment, every Rhodey moment and look at it with a different lens now that they think, 'Oh, he might've been a Skrull there.' And make the decision for themselves, or it'll be answered in 'Armor Wars.'"

Of course, between the SAG-AFTRA/WGA strikes, Disney slowing its Marvel Studios release calendar & cutting back on content spending, and the MCU beginning to take some serious critical hits from the once-faithful, it might be a while before we get those answers – it at all. And that might be the worst part in all of this – that a move like this would be pulled on a popular character without viewers getting a chance to learn what it all means. That it wasn't just done for a cheap dramatic pop. Time will tell…

In Marvel Studios' new series "Secret Invasion," set in the present day MCU, Nick Fury learns of a clandestine invasion of Earth by a faction of shapeshifting Skrulls. Fury joins his allies, including Everett Ross, Maria Hill and the Skrull Talos, who has made a life for himself on Earth. Together they race against time to thwart an imminent Skrull invasion and save humanity.

Marvel Studios' Secret Invasion stars Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Cobie Smulders, Martin Freeman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Charlayne Woodard, Killian Scott, Samuel Adewunmi, Dermot Mulroney, Christopher McDonald, and Katie Finneran, with Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, and Don Cheadle. Ali Selim directs the series and executive-produces, along with fellow executive producers Jackson, Kevin Feige, Jonathan Schwartz, Louis D'Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Kyle Bradstreet, and Brian Tucker. Bradstreet is also the head writer, and Jennifer L. Booth, Allana Williams, and Brant Englestein serve as co-executive producers.

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