Throughout the many entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universethere have been several interesting or prevalent fan theories that have since aged poorly. Since the beginning of the MCU film timeline, the franchise has sparked the imagination of audiences around the world. Building anticipation for future releases is a key part of the MCU’s success, establishing it as one of the biggest and most popular franchises in existence due to its sprawling nature and the seemingly endless possibilities of its stories.
As the MCU films and TV shows have gained a reputation for teasing future developments using small details and throwaway lines of dialogue, it’s natural for fan speculation to occasionally run wild. This saw the birth of several MCU theories, many of which turned out to be flat-out wrong. While some may initially seem quite clever, many MCU theories simply haven’t aged well.
10
Alexander Pierce was secretly the Red Skull
The Red Skull’s later reappearance made the theory redundant.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is widely considered one of the best films in the MCU, but before its release, many theories arose about the sequel. After the events of Captain America: The First Avenger, The Winter Soldier was Cap’s first solo film set in the present day. Speculation regarding Robert Redford’s casting in the film posited that his character, Alexander Pierce, was actually the Red Skull in disguise.
Redford’s considerable profile made the shocking turn of events seem all the more plausible, but the theory turned out to be completely wrong. Although Pierce was revealed to be in league with Hydra, he was not the Red Skull. To make the theory even worse, it was later revealed that Red Skull was named guardian of the Soul Stone on Vormir, making the once-interesting theory seem quite ridiculous in retrospect.
9
Thor dying at the end of the game
The evidence for Thor’s death theory was flimsy at best
Building the launch of Avengers: Endgamethere have been many bizarre theories about the culmination of the MCU’s Infinity Saga. After the shocking climax of Avengers: Infinity Warwhich saw several prominent characters eliminated by Thanos, it certainly seemed like anything was possible. The release of End of the gameThe trailer gave way to a theory that the film would see the end of Thor’s story in the MCU, and that the God of Thunder would die in the final battle against Thanos.
The main evidence for the theory was that Thor hardly appeared in the trailer for End of the game. Considering the events of Thor: Ragnarok and Infinity WarIt seemed possible that his MCU story would come to an end, but the film’s release proved that theory wrong. Since it turned out to be focused entirely on the wrong Avenger, with very little evidence, the theory has aged very poorly.
8
The true location of the Soul Stone
The Many Theories About the Soul Stone Were Wrong
After the Infinity Saga confirmed the existence of the Infinity Stones in the MCU, many theories arose about where the Soul Stone could be. One prominent theory was that the Stone was in the meteor that hit Wakanda and was responsible for the properties of the heart-shaped herb. Another was that Heimdall possessed the Stone in some way, largely due to the orange glow in his eyes.
Many of these theories revolved around the letter H, in line with the THANOS theory. Fans speculated that the letters spelling out Thanos delineated the Stones’ locationand that the H stood for Heimdall or herb, with the latter’s links to the Ancestral Plane cited as further evidence. While decidedly creative, theories about the location of the Soul Stone have proven to be wrong, with Infinity War revealing that it was kept on Vormir, making the theories age very poorly.
7
Thor being a Skrull
Skrull theories were focused on the wrong Avenger
Of all the heroes introduced in the MCU, Thor has undoubtedly undergone the most changes. First introduced as relatively serious and self-confident to the point of arrogance, Thor underwent a drastic change following the events of Phase 2 of the MCU. Somewhere it was Avengers: Age of Ultron and Thor: Ragnarokthe character changed to become considerably more comical in nature, sparking the rapid spread of a theory that he may have been replaced by a Skrull.
Initially, it seemed difficult to disprove the theory, as Thor’s personality change was undeniable, and 2019’s Captain Marvel stated the existence of the shape-shifting Skrulls in the MCU. However, the end of Secret Invasion confirmed that an Avenger was a Skrull for a considerable period, but he was War Machine and not Thor. While it hasn’t been explicitly disproved, the theory about Thor being a Skrull has simply aged poorly since it was conceived.
6
Doctor Strange is really Mephisto
The No Way Home Story Has Spawned Outrageous Theories
The cast of Spider-Man: No Way Home saw the return of many Marvel characters, but Doctor Strange’s appearance in the trailer gave way to a pretty crazy theory. As it seemed like the film was set to adapt the One more day comic book history, it was speculated that the Doctor Strange who appears in the trailer wasn’t actually the MCU’s former Sorcerer Supreme after all. The theory went that Strange was actually just Mephisto in disguise.
Considering Mephisto’s role in the One more day story, the basis for the theory made sense. Strange seemed to be acting a little out of character in No way homefrom the trailer, further fueling the theory. However, the film’s release completely refuted the idea that Mephisto was using Strange’s appearancemaking it seem like just another ridiculous theory about the villain’s MCU debut in retrospect.
5
A variant of Iron Man being part of the Illuminati
Multiverse Of Madness Trailer Sparked Many Iron Man Theories
The trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was one of the most exciting of the post-End of the game MCU, in part due to the huge speculation surrounding its Illuminati. The appearance of Iron Legion-like Ultron drones, confirmation from the Illuminati, and the brief scene of a character believed to be the Superior Iron Man led to a widely circulated theory that Iron Man would reappear in the MCU across the Multiverse. Some believed Robert Downey Jr. would return, while others thought Tom Cruise’s Iron Man variant would appear.
All theories turned out to be completely unfounded. The supposed Superior Iron Man seen in the trailer was revealed to be an alternate Captain Marvel, and Tony Stark did not appear as part of the Earth-838 Illuminati. Considering Iron Man’s tragic and heroic death just a few years earlier, the theory seems rather silly upon reflection. and it has aged incredibly poorly.
4
Loki didn’t have the soul stone
A theory about a theory has been proven to be totally wrong
Fan theories can often become incredibly complex, especially when they pertain to a franchise as big as the MCU. In the early stages of the franchise, many speculated that Loki’s scepter could contain an Infinity Stone, with the Soul Stone being one of the most popularly theorized sources of his power. In response, Another theory emerged that the Infinity Stone theory was wrong and that Loki’s scepter was nothing more than a red herring.
The MCU’s later revelation that Loki’s scepter actually contained an Infinity Stone – the Mind Stone, as it turned out – made the whole debate seem rather silly. Theories about where the other Stones might be continued to swirl, letting previously disproved notions fade into obscurity. Even so, it was once a common belief that Loki’s scepter couldn’t contain an Infinity Stone, which ended up aging terribly.
3
The crack dividing the universe in half
Endgame’s story wasn’t what one theory thought it would be
After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War and the apparent deaths of half the MCU’s population, many theories have emerged about how End of the game would solve the story. One that seemed to gain significant traction was that Thanos’ snap actually transported the other heroes to an alternate reality rather than erasing them from existence. Theorists have postulated that End of the game would follow two sets of heroes in two realities working to defeat Thanos on both fronts.
While the idea was a clever way to facilitate the return of all of the MCU’s supposedly fallen heroes, it wasn’t even remotely close to End of the gamethe real story. The theory ended up proving to be unnecessarily complicatedas time travel was used to accumulate the Stones and reverse Thanos’ snap. Ultimately, a single film following two realities simultaneously probably wouldn’t have been viable, and the theory now seems downright ridiculous.
2
It was Mephisto all along
The MCU has supported many Mephisto theories
Since then Agatha all the timeIt was announced that the cast of was introducing several magical figures into the MCU, the Mephisto rumor began to soar once again. There have been a considerable number of theories surrounding Mephisto’s MCU debut, mainly surrounding the events of WandaVisionand Aubrey Plaza being cast in a mystery role in the Agatha Harkness spinoff provided an opportunity for another. The most common belief was that Plaza would play Mephisto and that the villain would finally appear in the MCU.
However Agatha all the time confirmed the existence of Mephisto, Plaza was revealed to be an entirely different character. The show’s main antagonist turned out to be none other than Death, completely dispelling rumors about Mephisto’s appearance. Looking back at the speculation, seems as comprehensive as every other Mephisto theory that has come beforeall of which have been proven wrong.
1
WandaVision’s aerospace engineer was Reed Richards
A throwaway line turned out not to be as significant as believed
WandaVision helped usher in a new era for the MCU, dealing with some of the fallout from the end of the Infinity Saga and introducing new stories and characters. Part of the show’s appeal was its central mystery, as audiences were initially kept in the dark about the nature of Westview and Wanda and Vision’s place within it. A line from the show about an aerospace engineer led to rampant speculation that Reed Richards would make his debut in the Disney+ series.
The theories around WandaVisionReed Richards’ aerospace engineer seemed exciting, not least because the character’s absence from the franchise had already been deeply felt. However, the taunt proved to be nothing more than a throwaway line, and the engineer turned out to be no one remotely important. As such, Reed Richards’ speculation turned out to be perhaps the Marvel Cinematic Universethe worst age theory.