Throughout the many entries into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there have been several interesting or otherwise prevalent fan theories that have since come to age poorly. Since the beginning of the MCU’s movie 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 movies and TV shows of the MCU have grown a reputation for teasing future developments using minor details and throwaway lines of dialogue, it’s only natural for fan speculation to occasionally run wild. This has seen the birth of several MCU theories, many of which have turned out to be way off the mark. Though some may have initially seemed to be quite clever, many MCU theories simply didn’t age well at all.
10 Alexander Pierce Was Secretly The Red Skull
Red Skull's Later Reappearance Made The Theory Redundant
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is widely considered one of the best movies in the MCU, but leading up to its release, there many theories swirled about the sequel. After the World War II-set events of Captain America: The First Avenger, The Winter Soldier was Cap’s first solo movie set in the present day. Speculation about Robert Redford’s casting in the movie posited that his character, Alexander Pierce, was actually the Red Skull in disguise.
Redford’s considerable profile made the shock twist seem all the more plausible, but the theory was ultimately proven entirely wrong. Though Pierce was revealed to be in league with Hydra, he was not the Red Skull. To make the theory age even worse, Red Skull was later revealed to have been appointed the guardian of the Soul Stone on Vormir, making the once-interesting theory seem fairly ridiculous in hindsight.
9 Thor Dying In Endgame
The Evidence For Thor's Death Theory Was Flimsy At Best
Building up the release of Avengers: Endgame, there were many outlandish theories spun about the culmination of the MCU’s Infinity Saga. After the shocking climax of Avengers: Infinity War, which saw multiple prominent characters snapped out of existence by Thanos, it certainly seemed as though anything was possible. The release of Endgame’s trailer gave way to a theory that the movie would see the end of Thor’s MCU story, and that the God of Thunder would die in the final battle against Thanos.
The main piece of evidence for the theory was that Thor was hardly featured in the trailer for Endgame. Considering the events of Thor: Ragnarok and Infinity War, it did seem possible that his MCU story might come to an end, but the release of the movie proved the theory wrong. As it turned out that it was focused on entirely the wrong Avenger with very little evidence, the theory has aged pretty poorly.
8 The Soul Stone's Real Location
The Many Theories About The Soul Stone Were Way Off
Once the Infinity Saga had confirmed the existence of the Infinity Stones in the MCU, many theories swirled about where the Soul Stone might be. One prominent theory was that the Stone was in the meteor that had 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 of his eyes.
Many of these theories revolved around the letter H, in line with the THANOS theory. Fans speculated that the letters that spelled Thanos outlined the location of the Stones, and that the H stood for Heimdall or herb, with the latter’s links to the Ancestral Plane cited as further evidence. While decidedly creative, the theories regarding the Soul Stone’s location proved to be way off, with Infinity War revealing that it was kept on Vormir, making the theories age pretty poorly as a result.
7 Thor Being A Skrull
The Skrull Theories Were Focused On The Wrong Avenger
Of all of the heroes introduced in the MCU, Thor has arguably undergone the most change of all. First introduced as relatively serious and self-assured to the point of arrogance, Thor underwent a drastic change after the events of Phase 2 of the MCU. Somewhere been Avengers: Age of Ultron and Thor: Ragnarok, the character shifted to become considerably more comedic in nature, prompting 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 shift was undeniable, and 2019’s Captain Marvel affirmed the existence of the shape-shifting Skrulls in the MCU. However, the ending of Secret Invasion confirmed that one Avenger had been a Skrull for a considerable period, but it was War Machine rather than Thor. Though it hasn’t been explicitly disproven, the theory about Thor being a Skrull has simply aged poorly since it was first devised.
6 Doctor Strange Is Really Mephisto
No Way Home's Story Prompted 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 wild theory. As it seemed as though the movie was set to adapt the One More Day story from the comics, it was speculated that the Doctor Strange appearing in the trailer wasn’t really the MCU’s former Sorcerer Supreme after all. The theory went that Strange was really just Mephisto in disguise.
Considering Mephisto’s role in the One More Day story, the basis for the theory made sense. Strange did seem to be acting somewhat out of character in No Way Home’s trailer, further fuelling the theory. However, the release of the movie thoroughly disproved the idea that Mephisto was using Strange’s appearance, making it seem just another ridiculous theory about the villain’s MCU debut in retrospect.
5 An Iron Man Variant Being Part Of The Illuminati
Multiverse Of Madness's Trailer Sparked Many Iron Man Theories
The trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was one of the most exciting in the post-Endgame MCU, partly due to the huge speculation surrounding its Illuminati. The appearance of Ultron drones resembling the Iron Legion, the confirmation of the Illuminati, and the brief shot of a character believed to be Superior Iron Man led to a widely circulated theory that Iron Man would reappear in the MCU via the Multiverse. Some believed Robert Downey Jr. would return, while others thought Tom Cruise’s Iron Man variant would appear.
The theories all 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 was not featured as part of Earth-838's Illuminati. Considering Iron Man’s tragic and heroic death just a few years prior, the theory seems fairly silly upon reflection and has aged incredibly poorly.
4 Loki Didn't Have The Soul Stone
A Theory About A Theory Proved To Be All Wrong
Fan theories can often become incredibly complex, particularly where they relate to a franchise as massive as the MCU. The earlier stages of the franchise saw many speculate that Loki’s scepter could contain an Infinity Stone, with the Soul Stone being one of the most popularly theorized sources of its power. In response, another theory emerged that the Infinity Stone theory was way off base, and that Loki’s scepter was nothing more than a red herring.
The MCU’s later reveal that Loki’s scepter did indeed contain an Infinity Stone – the Mind Stone, as it turned out – made the whole debate look pretty silly. The theories about where the other Stones might be continued to swirl, leaving the previously disproved notions to fade into obscurity. Even so, it was once a commonly held belief that Loki’s scepter couldn’t possibly contain an Infinity Stone, which turned out to age pretty terribly.
3 The Snap Splitting 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 of the MCU’s population, many theories emerged about how Endgame would resolve the story. One which seemed to gain significant traction was that Thanos’ snap actually transported the other heroes into an alternate reality, rather than blinking them out of existence. The theorists posited that Endgame would follow two sets of heroes in two realities working to defeat Thanos on both fronts.
While the idea was a clever way of facilitating the return of all the MCU’s supposedly fallen heroes, it was not even remotely close to Endgame’s actual story. The theory was ultimately proven to be needlessly complicated, as time travel was used to amass the Stones and reverse Thanos’ snap. Ultimately, a single movie following two realities simultaneously probably wouldn’t have been at all feasible, and the theory now seems entirely ludicrous.
2 It Was Mephisto All Along
The MCU Has Endured Many Mephisto Theories
Ever since Agatha All Along’s cast was announced to be introducing multiple magical figures into the MCU, the Mephisto rumor mill began to fire up once again. There have been a considerable number of theories surrounding Mephisto’s MCU debut, most prominently surrounding the events of WandaVision, and Aubrey Plaza being cast in a mystery role for Agatha Harkness’ spin-off afforded an opportunity for another. The most commonly-held belief was that Plaza would be playing Mephisto, and that the villain would finally appear in the MCU.
Though Agatha All Along did confirm the existence of Mephisto, Plaza was revealed as an entirely different character. The show’s main antagonist turned out to none other than Death, thoroughly dispelling the rumors regarding Mephisto’s appearance. Looking back on the speculation, it seems just as much of a reach as all the other Mephisto theories that came before, all 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 ending of the Infinity Saga and introducing new storylines and characters. Part of the show’s appeal was its central mystery, as the audience were initially kept in the dark about the nature of Westview and Wanda and Vision’s place within it. One line in the show regarding an aerospace engineer led to rampant speculation that Reed Richards would be making his debut in the Disney+ series.
The theories around WandaVision’s aerospace engineer being Reed Richards seemed exciting, if only because the character’s absence from the franchise had already been keenly felt. However, the tease proved to be nothing more than a throwaway line, and the engineer turned out to be no one remotely important. As such, the Reed Richards speculation turned out to be perhaps the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s worst-aged theory.
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