The discovery that Emilia Clarke is Abigail Brand puts an end to the speculation surrounding her role in Secret Invasion.
The Disney+ Secret Invasion series is one of the most anticipated Marvel projects coming next year.
Ever since they unveiled the trailer, Marvel Studios has been quiet about the specifics of the series.
Although Marvel often keeps their next projects under wraps, the silence on one character, in particular, has led to a lot of fan speculation.
The identity of Emilia Clarke’s role has been a mystery ever since her inclusion in the show was announced. We just knew she was in the series till today. However, it appears that a small amount of information—more precisely, a gif—may have accidentally exposed who Clarke is portraying after all.
Collider reported on October 27 that Marvel recently posted a GIF of Clarke with the tags “#It’s-The-Beginning” and “#Abigail-Brand” in the official Tenor GIF database. After a while, the brand tag was taken off, but not before fans and media outlets saw it.
The fact that other well-known characters were also added to the Tenor database as additional gifs from significant moments reinforces the very probable possibility that Clarke is portraying Abigail Brand. Characters like Nick Fury, played by Samuel L. Jackson, and Maria Hill, played by Cobie Smulders, are labelled in some of those gifs.
Who is Abigail Brand?
Abigail Brand is the commander of S.W.O.R.D., the intelligence agency that is the counterpart to S.H.I.E.L.D. and was already introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in WandaVision. Protecting Earth from threats from other planets is a crucial responsibility of the organization.
Secret Invasion features the shape-shifting Skrulls wreaking havoc on superheroes. Abigail might be a spy whose half-alien origins could aid Talos, played by Ben Mendelson and Fury, in discovering the Skrull menace if the series stays true to the comics.
Secret Invasion in the Marvel Comic Book Story
The idea for Secret Invasion originated with author Brian Michael Bendis. Bendis set the stage for one of his greatest epics after reviving Earth’s Mightiest Heroes with his New Avengers run that began in 2005. At the conclusion of the first season of the Avengers, with the plot line “Avengers Disassembled” Bendis began his lengthy tenure. The strong team collapsed from within in this story. An era that had spanned more than 400 issues was coming to an end.
However, Captain America and Iron Man would soon form a new Avengers team, understanding that the planet couldn’t be left unguarded. Long-running Marvel characters like Spider-Man and Wolverine would finally join the group.
Who are the Skrulls?
Since 1962’s Fantastic Four #2, the ominous Skrulls have been a pain in the sides of Marvel’s heroes. The shape-shifting green reptile aliens could take on the appearance of any person.
The epic Kree-Skrull battle depicted in the pages of Avengers was the result of their making life miserable for Earth’s heroes. They continued to cause havoc after that, most notably kidnapping Thing’s girlfriend, Alicia Masters, and swapping her with a Skrull agent. She split the crew apart when she wed the Human Torch.
The Skrull homeworld was destroyed during this period by the planet-eating Galactus, which reduced them to a nomadic race. However, they were never distracted from their goals for Earth.
Fans’ reaction to Emilia Clarke’s role
The extensive rumours regarding Emilia Clarke’s character in Secret Invasion come to an end with the revelation that she is Abigail Brand.
The MCU’s revelation that Brand is a former SHIELD agent—and even someone who Fury secretly had a lot of confidence in—will not be shocking.
Emilia Clarke’s absence of Brand’s distinctive green hair in Secret Invasion may have comic readers scratching their heads, but it was probably a conscious choice to keep her character’s identity a surprise. Anyhow, Abigail Brand’s future is expected to be very good because of Emilia Clarke’s Secret Invasion role.
Other Characters featured in Secret Invasion
Based on the trailers, we see James Rhodes, a.k.a. War Machine, who is portrayed by Don Cheadle, along with Nick Fury, played by Samuel L. Jackson, and Maria Hill, played by Cobie Smulders.
Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, Olivia Colman, Christopher McDonald, Carmen Ejogo, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Killian Scott will also appear in the series.
Also Read: Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantum Mania trailer released
