How Marvel's Secret Invasion Sets Up War Machine Movie Armor Wars

Secret Invasion laid some major groundwork for Armor Wars in the MCU. The final episode of the Disney+ series revealed that Colonel James Rhodes has been a Skrull in these movies for longer than we realized. That's right, Don Cheadle's character looks to have been replaced by an alien intruder back in Captain America: Civil War! That's a bonkers reveal and inspired quite a lot of dialogue between the fans online. However, it sets up some very necessary seeds for Marvel Studios' Armor Wars movie. 

Armor Wars will now focus on Rhodey as he acclimates to a world that's completely different from the one he existed in back in the earlier MCU titles. Remember when the heroes' biggest worries were things like the Sokovia Accords. Those kinds of conflicts seem so quaint in a world that had half of all life in the universe snapped away by a purple alien or another more glow alien vowing to come back to judge all of humanity for their crimes. (To say nothing of the time-traveling menace that is pullings some of these strings from behind the curtain…) It's going to be a lot to adjust to.

One key part of Rhodes' reintegration into modern life is going to be his adjustment to the loss of Tony Stark. Because the Skrull swap happened so early, he was not present for Iron Man's death. That's going to be a lot to process. But, it also provides fertile ground for a plot where someone is using Stark's armor designs and technology for evil. Cheadle will be at the forefront of this movie playing a version of Rhodey that will feel different than the one we've come to know. However, Armor Wars is exciting because of the infinite possibilities this movie presents.

Cheadle's Previous Interviews Hinted At Skrull Reveal

It seems that in a bunch of the interviews that Don Cheadle had about playing Rhodey in recent years, he was hinting at this Skrull reveal. Reading the comments after Episode 6 of Secret Invasion casts a brand-new light on how far back this plan stretches. Last year, at ACE Comic-Con, Cheadle explained their direction for Armor Wars. Focusing on Rhodey here seems to be the backbone of the series. Yes, Stark tech falling into the wrong hands is rough. But, who is James Rhodes when there's no Iron Man around for him to bounce off of?

"I think the most exciting part is yet to come. I think we don't have a super-strong idea of who he is, really. Outside of that bubble of The Avengers. Outside of his friendship with Tony. Now, he's going to be untethered from all of that," Cheadle explained. "So, it's an opportunity to discover who he is, that we have not had before with concentrated time and focus on Rhodey, and Rhodey's journey. Hopefully, some stuff about his past. Teeing up some things about his potential future. Who knows how long this Marvel thing goes. It seems kinda unending."

How Is Marvel Studios Developing Armor Wars?

Before Armor Wars was a movie, it was a Disney+ series. Marvel Studios made the call to bump the project up to the big leagues last year. San Diego Comic-Con was speculated to have some sort of reveal, but instead the news about the reclassification came through. So, with the budget and scale ramped up a bit, it makes a lot of sense to do it that way. People miss Iron Man a lot, and having Rhodey step in to maintain that legacy, with a presumed Riri Williams, would be fascinating. As many fans note online, a lot of the MCU's lore traces back to Tony Stark. This would be the most literal version of that yet.

"It's going to be interesting. We are just talking about what that show is going to be," Cheadle told AP Entertainment. "We probably will start filming sometime next year and are just cracking the story right now. Deciding what that journey [is] going to look like, what the iteration of this is going to be. Obviously, if people know Armor Wars [from the comics] they know what the series is about. But it's also figuring out how to establish and dig really deep into who Rhodey is because we haven't really seen a lot of that in the movies."

Secret Invasion Is All Wrapped Up, But The Speculation Is Still Rolling

The MCU's top superspy Nick Fury is back in Secret Invasion, the limited series that premiered June 21st on Disney+. Samuel L. Jackson returns in the new Marvel Studios series, showcasing Fury's attempt to get to the bottom of a Skrull invasion that goes all the way to the most powerful positions in various governments and organizations on the planet. In Secret Invasion, Fury teams with allies Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), Everett Ross (Martin Freeman), and Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), while James Rhodes AKA War Machine will appear in a mysterious capacity. Other newcomers to the Marvel Cinematic Universe include Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, and Kingsley Ben-Adir.

Do you like the Rhodey reveal? Let us know in the comments!