Secret Invasion Seemingly Confirms When Rhodey Was Replaced In MCU

On Wednesday, Marvel Studios released the Secret Invasion finale on Disney+, and the episode may finally reveal how long James "Rhodey" Rhodes, a.k.a. War Machine, was replaced by a Skrull. SPOILERS follow for Secret Invasion episode 6, "Home." A previous episode of Secret Invasion confirmed suspicions that Col. James Rhodes (Don Cheadle) had been replaced by a Skrull, giving Gravik's Skrull fraction a man inside the United States president's inner circle. Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige hinted that Rhodey has been a Skrull for a while but remained vague on exactly when in the Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline Rhodey's abduction and replacement occurred.

The Secret Invasion finale, "Home," reveals that the real Rhodey is alive and well. His rescue may confirm when the switch took place.

How long has Rhodey been a Skrull?

In the MCU, the Skrulls keep the individuals they replace alive and in a pod to access their memories. Thus, Rhodey remained alive with several other political and scientific leaders in New Skrullos. Gi'ah (Emilia Clarke) rescues them in Secret Invasion Episode 6 after defeating Gravik. The abductees all have on whatever outfit they were wearing when the Skrulls took them. Rhodey is in a hospital gown and is struggling to use his legs.

Those are two clues about when the Skrulls took Rhodey. The gown suggests the Skrulls took Rhodey from a hospital. The legs could be explained away as muscle atrophy from disuse while in the Skrull pod, but none of the other abductees have that problem. MCU viewers will likely remember that Rhodey lost the use of his legs after one of Vision's energy beams cut through his War Machine armor during the "Clash of the Avengers" seen in Captain America: Civil War. Both legs were paralyzed but with the use of leg braces early on, Rhodey seemed to make a miraculous recovery. Given what we know now, it seems more likely that this is when the Skrulls took and replaced Rhodey while he was in the hospital after being injured.

Why did Marvel make Rhodey a Skrull?

Marvel Studios could have chosen anyone to be a Skrull in Secret Invasion. Feige previously explained why they picked Rhodey.

"We needed to have a character that one would not expect to be a Skrull," Feige told Marvel.com. "Don was on board for this reveal of playing and revealing another side of Rhodey and revealing that, yeah, Rhodey has been a Skrull. When we have amazing actors, like Don, that have been with us for so many years, we very much treat them as partners in the creative collaboration. It was very early days when we pitched this concept to Don, and he very much was into it and into being able to play with different sides of Rhodey that we haven't seen before."

Feige also hinted that viewers would come to "understand exactly how long he's been a Skrull. We like the idea of fans going back and watching some of the other appearances of Rhodey and realizing that that wasn't him."

If Rhodey has been a Skrull since Captain America: Civil War, then there are several appearances since then that Marvel fans could go back and look at with new eyes. They include Rhodey's roles in Avengers: Infinity War, Captain Marvel's post-credits scene, and Avengers: Endgame, and his guest appearance in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (which earned Don Cheadle an Emmy nomination).

What does this mean for Rhodey in the MCU?

If Rhodey has been in stasis since the Clash of the Avengers, then he's missed many significant events in the MCU, not to mention years of his life. He skipped Thanos' invasion of Earth, the Blip, and the return of all the Blip's victims. He's also unaware that his best friend, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), sacrificed himself to defeat Thanos and is now dead.

This all likely help sets up Rhodey's story in the upcoming Armor Wars movie. After learning about Tony's death, Rhodey will likely be eager to see Tony's memory honored by getting his technology back from anyone who would misuse it or whatever spin Marvel Studios puts on the classic Iron Man story.

How to watch Marvel's Secret Invasion

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.

Marvel's Secret Invasion, "Home," is streaming now on Disney+. With that, the entire Secret Invasion series is now streaming on Disney+.