How 'Avengers: Infinity War' Hints At Captain Marvel's Kree-Skrull War

It was easy to miss, but it seems Avengers: Infinity War did give a nod to the Kree-Skrull War that will be seen in Captain Marvel.

Spoilers incoming for Avengers: Infinity War, so if you haven't seen it yet you've been warned.

Early on the Guardians of the Galaxy literally run into a beaten down Thor (with their windshield). Upon bringing him into the ship the crew can't get over how muscular he is, causing Gamora to say "it's like his muscles are made of Cotati metal fibers." That might seem like a throwaway line, but it actually has some roots in the Kree-Skrull War.

The Cotati are a telepathically gifted race of beings that used to be human but are now more plant-like in nature, resembling trees. The Cotati called the planet Hala their home and shared the planet with the Kree. The Skrulls, who at the time (thousands of years ago) were more peaceful in nature, wanted to see who would speak for the plant and ultimately serve the Skrulls, so they tasked them with building a habitable area on Earth's mon, and whoever did so first would become part of the Skrull empire.

The Kree would build a massive city with man technological advances, but the Cotati would go the other direction, preferring an enclosed ecological system. The Skrulls would choose the Cotati, but the Kree did not take that lying down and would slaughter many of the Cotati and the Skrull representatives as a result. They would then take the Skrull technology that they confiscated and use it to build up their empire, and years later would ambush the Skrulls, igniting a massive and brutal war.

Ultimately the Cotati would survive thanks to some friendly Krees (the Priests of Pama) and their own survival instinct, and ironically Mantis figures into that equation as well. Mantis was later revealed to be the Celestial Madonna. The prophecy goes a union of the perfect human and the perfect plant would result in the perfect child, otherwise called the Celestial Messiah. This would eventually happen (though some weird possession of the Swordsman would have to happen first), with the two having a child named Sequoia.

So yeah, dropping that Cotati line in there seems more than mere coincidence, and is one more step to seeing the Kree-Skrull War develop on the big screen. The stories involving the Cotati, who already exist in the MCU since Gamora knows them by name, will likely be tweaked for film, but don't be surprised if they make an appearance in some form or fashion when Captain Marvel finally hits.

Captain Marvel lands in theaters on March 8, 2019.