Secret Invasion is the first MCU TV show to hit Disney Plus this year, with Marvel’s new trailer having revealed the show’s June 21st release date. The clip contains plenty of exciting and puzzling details about the battle that Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) will get involved in. One of them concerns the Avengers, who have been largely absent from the MCU Phase 4. But don’t expect big Avengers surprises from the Secret Invasion TV show.
The Avengers play a big role in the Secret Invasion comics, but the TV show won’t adapt that story faithfully. Not to mention that Marvel’s marketing for the TV show is already telling us not to expect Avengers in this story. Before I can explain, you should know that spoilers might follow below.
Where are the Avengers?
As I repeatedly mentioned while reporting on the MCU developments, the Avengers are conspicuously absent from most Phase 4 adventures, where their help could be useful. Yes, shows like Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel, and She-Hulk tell us how popular the Avengers are. But they never show up, with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings being somewhat of an exception.
We’ve had to wait for the MCU Phase 4 to almost run its course before Marvel told us the Avengers group doesn’t exist after Endgame. The big reveal came from Marvel’s Kevin Feige during the D23 Expo event last September, rather than an actual MCU project. That’s something Secret Invasion can correct, as the trailer teased. Someone will ask where the Avengers are.
That’s the question you’d expect to hear in a spy story involving a shape-shifting alien race looking to replace humans with infiltrators. The Avengers could very well stand in the Skrulls’ way. But what if they try to replace Avengers?
Since it’s a TV show, we shouldn’t expect to see that many Avengers in Secret Invasion, especially considering the group doesn’t exist. We do know that James Rhodes (Don Cheadle) will show up in Secret Invasion. He is a former Avenger, and we don’t expect him to suit up in the movie. Cameos and special effects cost money.
But it turns out there’s an actual reason we’re not likely to see the Avengers save the day.
Nick Fury won’t want the Avengers’ help in Secret Invasion
The Secret Invasion trailers made it clear so far that Fury believes this is his fight. He’s returned to Earth from space to fight this particular battle. And actor Samuel L. Jackson, who has been involved in the MCU since the first Iron Man movie, explained to Vanity Fair Fury’s mental state after Endgame.
Those events shook the top spy, especially the deaths of two of his closest allies. “Even Nick Fury can be shaken, you know?” Jackson said, revealing Fury moved to space as he didn’t believe he could fix things anymore.
“He’s up there trying to process what the fuck happened, you know? And what his place in the world is,” Jackson added. “The death of Iron Man, the death of Black Widow — with that stuff going on, he just kind of checked out.”
We keep seeing two faces of Fury in the trailer. In some scenes, Fury is wearing an eye patch. In others, he isn’t. Jackson explained that the patch is “part of who the strong Nick Fury was.” Not wearing it shows his vulnerability. “You can look at it and see he’s not this perfectly indestructible person. He doesn’t feel like that guy,” he said.
Jackson also teased the absence of Avengers in the post-Endgame world, which is starting to doubt Fury in Secret Invasion.
“What he’s not doing is calling in his super friends. So that’s part of the whole dilemma,” Jackson said. “I mean, people want them and he’s not bringing them.” So why aren’t the Avengers going to be involved in Secret Invasion? “You’ll find that out,” the actor teased. “There’s a very good reason [Fury is] holding back.”
Jackson may have been speaking to Vanity Fair, but that’s Marvel’s messaging. We won’t have Avengers in Secret Invasion, and there should be a good reason for that.
