17 MCU Fan Theories That'll Possibly Change Everything You Thought You Knew About Marvel

My mind continues to be blown!

Hello, fellow Marvel fans! I'm sure everyone reading this has seen every movie and TV show that has come out of the MCU. I mean, it's only the biggest franchise in the world!

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And what's even better than watching them all is making fan theories about each movie, TV show, and character!

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So here are 17 Marvel fan theories that you just have to see:

1. Bucky Barnes was brainwashed into killing Peter Parker's parents while he was the Winter Soldier.

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If you've seen Captain America: Civil War, then you know that throughout the 20th century, Bucky Barnes was brainwashed into completing several assassinations when he was turned into the Winter Soldier by Zola. One of those assassinations was Tony Stark's parents, Howard and Maria Stark. 

This has caused many fans and theorists to wonder who else Bucky could have killed during his 70 years as an assassin and some believe he could've even killed Peter Parker's parents. A big hint to this theory is that one of the words used to activate Bucky's mind control is "homecoming," which is also the name of the first Spider-Man film with Tom Holland.

Similarly, with Tony's parents, Peter's parents could have worked with SHIELD, making them a target for HYDRA. 

You can see the full explanation of the theory here!

2. The Eternals created the Ten Rings in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Marvel Studios / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Marvel Studios / Courtesy Everett Collection

During Eternals, Sersi finds out that the Eternals are not who they thought they were among other secrets about their identity. They believe they are protectors of the Earth but they are actually partly the cause of Earth's destruction. To stop this, Phastos constructs several ring devices for the Eternals to channel all of their power into. 

In Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, when Wenwu discovers the rings, they give him powers and the ability to live longer.

Given this information, this redditor believes that "the Ten Rings came from a failed rebellion attempt by the Eternals against the Celestials several millennia earlier. While it was never explicitly said, it’s actually quite possible that the Eternals had a similar moment of revelation about their true purpose and just chose to fight against it." They also believe that Phastos made a set of rings during this conflict just for the Eternals to fight back. They ended up failing, which led to the destruction of the planet along with their memory being wiped and other results. The rings ended up landing on Earth, which is where Wenwu found them and accessed their powers. 

When it comes to Wenwu, he doesn't exhibit all 10 powers yet simply because he is still a human. This redditor believes it's likely that he still obtained enough powers to give him the edge he needed to create his empire. 

3. WandaVision and the Loki series are connected.

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With WandaVision and Loki being two of the biggest TV shows to come out in 2021, obviously people have made plenty of fan theories about them. Some connect the two series together and here's one theory — connecting the two shows — that I can’t stop thinking about.

Starting with background info, we need to talk about the Time Variance Authority before we dive right into the theory. TVA deals with Nexus events and prevents the Sacred Timeline from branching. All of the technology they used are Kang’s (He Who Remains) inventions. Now jumping into WandaVision, when Wanda became Scarlet Witch, she became a Nexus being that created a Nexus event branching from the Scared Timeline. Eventually, the TVA would have to reset the timeline and eliminate Scarlet Witch, but she was too powerful for just the TVA. This is where He Who Remains comes in.

This Reddit user believes that it was Kang’s plan all along. He Who Remains knows everything; all there is in time. He knows what’s going to happen in the future and can even act accordingly to overcome anything. The user then questions what would happen when a being can change that future and Kang suddenly cannot predict it? Well, he’ll most likely be defeated by the Scarlet Witch. She can create a probability hex, which can change an event’s probability and change the outcome. So Kang uses Sylvie to unleash infinite variants of himself in order to defeat Scarlet Witch. According to his paradox, Kang Prime will end the multiversal war, thus having Kang be on top again as He Who Remains. 

Some people mention that Loki was placed before Wandavision according to the official timeline of the series, but it’s still worth mentioning. 

4. For Avengers: Age Of Ultron, there was a cover-up of the Avengers' involvement in creating Ultron.

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This theory started by Reddit user u/eyejafjallajokull suggests that the Avengers' involvement in creating Ultron was covered up. They explain that because "Tony is never shown facing any backlash for destroying an entire country, there must have been a cover-up. The government covered it up for him and probably found a scapegoat to frame."

This could definitely be a possibility. If not, the redditor also believes that they could've easily made up some story about what Ultron was. The only hint of someone getting blamed for Ultron was Zemo, but unfortunately not for the right reasons, so why not?

5. The Guardians of the Galaxy will retire and be born anew.

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Reddit user u/CaptainFunktastic has this theory about the Guardians of the Galaxy that doesn't sound too out there once you think about it. Given that Dave Bautista has already confirmed he's leaving and Rocket is rumored to die, here's what they speculate will happen considering phase four is all about "new beginnings."

"If Drax doesn't die, he and Mantis will sail off into the sunset together and live happily ever after. We all know Rocket is dying after confirmation with the High Evolutionary. With Rocket gone, Groot will tag along with Thor and even cameo as 'Throot' at some point. Peter will sadly say goodbye to an empty ship and disappear into the universe."

After that, they'll need replacements for the team.

6. HYDRA is the reason there's no X-Men in the Marvel movies and no Avengers in Fox movies.

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This theory suggests that the rise of HYDRA is the reason why there are no X-Men in the Avengers movies and no Avengers in the X-Men movies. 

This Reddit user believes this is the case because in the MCU, HYDRA conquered Germany and stopped Hitler before he began the Holocaust; therefore Erik Lehnsherr was never imprisoned or experimented on. It also means that the person who would have become Magneto never discovered his powers, never met Xavier, and the X-Men were never formed. Though the mutants are still in the MCU (for example, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), they stay hidden away. 

To further back this theory up, in the Fox universe, HYDRA never rose to power, which means the SSR (which would've become SHIELD) was never created. This also means that Captain America would've never gotten his powers and Howard Stark would've never gotten access to the rare/alien technology, resulting in the Arc Reactor never being created. Clint and Natasha also would've never joined SHIELD, which would mean no Avengers. 

7. At the end of Captain America: The First Avenger, SHIELD intentionally made the mistake of having dates that already passed.

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This redditor believes that SHIELD didn't mistakenly play the wrong baseball game when Steve Rogers woke up after being frozen for 70 years, but instead they did so on purpose because they were testing him. 

According to them, Steve Rogers was selected for displaying intelligence and bravery, and for being clever. If Steve didn't notice that the dates had already passed, it would have raised concern and doubt for his ability to be the original super-soldier. It was most likely the first of several subtle tests to ensure that there wasn't too much damage from him being frozen for over 70 years. 

8. Instead of the Mind Stone giving Pietro his powers, he actually got them from Wanda.

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According to a long-running theory, it's possible that Scarlet Witch gave Quicksilver his powers. After the release of WandaVision, especially Episode 8, the show clarifies that Wanda still doesn't fully understand the complete potential of her powers and that she could've done this without knowing it. Agatha also confirmed that Wanda could create life and alter people’s DNA, which could've been what she did for Pietro. 

Throughout her time in the MCU, we've already seen Wanda's powers be the reason someone gets their abilities. Monica Rambeau has superpowers after passing through the magical Hex barrier that Wanda created three times. She didn't mean for that to happen but that also goes to show that her powers can create superpowers in others without her knowledge. If this is what happens when she uses her powers unknowingly, it is believable that Wanda gave Pietro powers at some point during their childhood. 

There's much more evidence to this theory that'll leave you surprised. You can read it here. 

9. In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter will join the Venom symbiote to beat the Sinister Six.

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According to this theory from Reddit user u/the_war_won, The post-credits scene from Venom: Let There Be Carnage is being misinterpreted. Venom doesn't want to kill Spider-Man. Instead, he wants to ditch Eddie and join forces with Peter Parker. The b-story of NWH will have Venom trying to hunt down Peter in the new universe he's found himself in. Eddie will think they're trying to kill him but the symbiote will betray Eddie to join with Peter just when it seems that he's close to defeat by the Sinister Six. 

The Venom symbiote will give Peter newfound strength to win the fight with the Sinister Six and we'll end the movie with Peter in the iconic black suit with the white Spider-Man emblem. Eddie will now have a reason to hate Peter and in the next movie, when Peter ultimately rejects the Venom symbiote, the symbiote will hate Peter as well. 

The next time we see Venom rejoin with Eddie, he'll keep the white Spider-Man emblem and web-slinging ability and we'll finally have a comics-accurate Venom.

Now with this theory, we'll find out VERY soon if it's right or not, but it's still very interesting. 

10. Black Widow is actually alive and she just didn't return in Avengers: Endgame because she's waiting on Vormir.

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This redditor has noticed a lot of people talking about how the Soul Stone works to preserve souls and how you can exchange a soul for a soul as a possibility for why Natasha might come back eventually. But they realize how it might be much simpler than everyone thinks in terms of Natasha being alive. 

In their own shortened version of this theory, this redditor believes that Captain America never went back to return the Soul Stone. It wouldn’t work if the idea were to limit the disruption to other timelines. When Thanos arrived in another timeline, he could’ve just obtained the stone in the wake of Black Widow's sacrifice and wouldn’t have needed to sacrifice Gamora. But this would mess up the timeline.

So instead, they believe that Steve went back and actually stopped Clint and Natasha when they landed on the planet. "He told them what was about to happen and even explained that for things to work out, Natasha would have to stay behind on the planet as if she actually died. After the final battle, she could set her suit’s return, making sure that she didn’t interfere with the ideal timeline where Thanos was ultimately defeated," the redditor writes. 

"We know that when a timeline is changed by removing an infinity stone, it creates a parallel one without the associated Infinity Stone. We know that returning the stone will return the reality back to the main timeline, or effectively stop it from branching at all. This was explained by the Ancient One and Bruce Banner. It stands to reason that stopping the Infinity Stone from being taken would accomplish the same thing, effectively eliminating that branch from ever happening and restoring that alternate timeline to the original."

So, in the end, when Hulk snapped, he wasn’t able to bring back Natasha simply because she is still alive.

11. Tony Stark didn't completely die in Avengers: Endgame.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Marvel Studios / courtesy Everett Collection

There's a long-running theory that's been going around in the MCU fandom that maybe Iron Man isn't dead after all. It's definitely happened before where we think characters are long gone but they actually aren't. This theory by Reddit user u/Carrot-Imaginary suggests that when Iron Man died, his conscience became an AI while his body was dead, leaving Ironheart to take his place since that happened in the comics. 

At the end of Avengers: Endgame, the hologram of Tony turns to face his daughter Morgan. When he faces her exact position, it's almost as if he knew she was there. A hologram wouldn't just know to do that. So keeping this in mind, their theory is that Iron Man's conscience was backed up into the Iron Man helmet before he died, which means he's still alive as an AI, like in the comics. 

12. M'Baku became the king of Wakanda and maybe Black Panther during the five-year time jump in Avengers: Endgame.

Marvel / Walt Disney Co./ Everett Collection

For a while, redditor u/Dreadful_menace had this theory behind M'Baku becoming king in Black Panther and ever since I read it, I can't stop thinking about it. 

This interesting theory suggests that since M'Baku was able to run at the same pace with Captain American, Thor, and Black Panther during the charge against Thanos's army, he was clearly a strong contender to rule Wakanda when T'Challa and Shuri were dusted away in Avengers: Infinity War. So who else would've ruled Wakanda during those five years other than him?

Black Panther established that M'Baku was a match for T'Challa, as seen in the waterfall scene during the fight for the throne. He was the most capable person to lead Wakanda in its darkest time and with the royal line of succession broken, he might have just taken the throne because it was necessary. 

13. Vision’s mention of the Ship of Theseus is not simply a nod to his character but to the MCU moving forward with variants, Skrulls, and multiversal versions of characters.

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According to this redditor, "phase four of the MCU will deal with identity and how the characters' perceptions of themselves change. Each character in this phase will have to deal with their identity, whether it’s Jane Foster becoming the next Thor, Loki finding out he’s a variant, or even the Avengers replacing every founding member of their team." 

Sooner or later, they’ll have to confront their true identities. 

In WandaVision, there's a line that is mainly about the Ship of Theseus but could also be looked at in a way to perfectly characterizes the MCU is moving forward in phase four. Vision and Wanda both struggle with their identities throughout WandaVision, which could further show how the possible theme for phase four is identity. 

The creator of this theory believes that the multiverse will also broaden the scope of this theme with the existence of Warpers. They explain that there “will be different versions of characters from other universes” (which we’ve seen in the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer). 

Another possible example of this theory is the Avengers themselves. The original Avengers are, for the most part, gone. Tony, Steve, and ~possibly~ Natasha are all gone. Thor is flying solo and the Hulk has reconciled his two selves. The Avengers consist almost entirely of new blood; for example, Sam Wilson is redefining the role of Captain America. 

All of this shows just how much identity and the characters' perception of themselves will possibly be the core focus of phase four.

14. Thanos adopted Gamora specifically as a sacrifice for the Soul Stone, but when he grew too attached to her, he adopted Nebula to be sacrificed by Gamora instead.

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According to this theory, Thanos knew the price that had to be paid for the Soul Stone, which is why he "adopted" Gamora, knowing that he had no family or loved ones of his own. However, he found himself actually coming to love her, which made it harder to put her in harm's way. So instead, he adopted Nebula and planned for the pair to get the Soul Stone together with the intention of Gamora sacrificing her sister instead.

The Reddit user explained that "this is why he constantly pits the two against each other, to be certain that Gamora would always be the winner. Every time Nebula lost, he would replace a part of her body with cybernetics. Not to make her stronger but actually the opposite, making sure she would always be at a disadvantage against her sister. This would also foster a deep resentment in Nebula, ensuring she would be willing to fight to the death even if Gamora tried to refuse. This is also why Nebula seemed to know the price of the Soul Stone but not Gamora."

During Infinity War, Nebula instantly knew Gamora was dead when Thanos returned to Vormir with the stone and not her. In the following Avengers movie, when Clint and Natasha set off for Vormir, Nebula warned them to be careful and hoped that they didn't have a falling-out on the way. 

15. Bruce Banner's Super Soldier Serum wasn't the fail we think it was. He actually got it right.

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In The Incredible Hulk, it's revealed that the accident that turned Bruce Banner into the Hulk was the result of an experiment commissioned by the military and General Ross to attempt to recreate the serum that was used to create Captain America.

According to this Reddit user, it doesn't make sense that they would get the serum wrong given that it was worked on for so long. This was decades after WW2 and it makes sense that the Hulk was created from the Super Soldier Serum. During Captain America: The First Avenger, we learn that the traits of a person are actually amplified from using the serum. For example, Red Skull was evil before using the serum and then he became even eviler after using it. Afterward, those traits only grew. So given that, they believe that Bruce Banner didn't get the Super Soldier Serum wrong at all. 

They explain, "Usually in Hulk content, many of Bruce's character arcs involve him being filled with rage, even before he transitions into the Hulk. The Hulk only personified his rage." 

With that in mind, it's possible that the serum was made correctly and it fulfilled its purpose of making Bruce physically stronger (through the Hulk) and amplifying his biggest trait: rage.

16. Thanos gives Loki the Mind Stone in Avengers, not to get the Space Stone, but to further corrupt Loki and destabilize Asgard so Thanos could eventually invade an unprotected Nidavellir and force Eitri into making the Infinity Gauntlet.

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This clever theory suggests that Thanos gave Loki the Mind Stone as a ruse to get to Nidavellir. So let’s dive in, shall we? The redditor writes, "Thanos orchestrated the further corruption of Loki and the New York attack to divide and distract the Asgardians. With the Asgardian royalty destabilized and fighting among themselves, he could attack the unprotected forge of Nidavellir, the only place capable of forging a device strong enough to hold the Infinity Stones." 

As we saw in Avengers, Thanos and Loki made a deal in which Loki would use the scepter with the Mind Stone to take over Earth and Loki would give Thanos the Tesseract in exchange. But it's worth considering whether Thanos needed Loki at all when he had his own army.

Now on to the theory. This redditor believes that "Thanos specifically sought out Loki to launch the attack on Earth. The Mad Titan wasn’t aiming for the two-for-one Mind/Space Stone deal he pitched to Loki. He was secretly plotting to create a rift in the Asgardian royal family. Thanos’s ultimate goal was to invade Nidavellir and force Eitri to make the Infinity Gauntlet, but he couldn’t subjugate the forge while it still had a defense pact with Asgard.”

In a scene during Avengers: Infinity War, Eitri says to Thor, “You were supposed to protect us; Asgard was supposed to protect us.”

Their theory works because Thanos could goad the recently ostracized prince of Asgard into conquering Earth just to defy Odin’s will. The risk of losing the Mind Stone was minimal compared to the goal of obtaining the gauntlet since the stones were of little use until he had it. 

Also, in Infinity War, Rocket questioned if Nidavellir is real to Thor because that place is where they make the most powerful and horrific weapons ever to torment the universe. The creator of this theory believes that if Rocket knew about Nidavellir, then Thanos would probably know of the forge.

The only obstacle in the way was the Asgardian army. Knowing his army wasn't a match for it, Thanos sought out Loki and used him to create an opening. As a result, he created a rift between Loki, Thor, and Odin, and kicked off the Ragnarok destruction prophecy.

17. Loki was controlled by the Tesseract more than he let on.

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This redditor came up with this interesting theory about Loki that hints at him being under more control than he let people believe. Since his eyes glowed multiple times and he shed a tear when Thor tried to talk sense into him, that is all evidence to believe that maybe Loki wasn't really showing just how much the Tesseract was controlling him. 

What are some kinda ridiculous yet majorly convincing Marvel fan theories that you believe?

Note: Reddit Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.