SPOILERS are ahead for Secret Invasion, now streaming with a Disney+ subscription.
Disney+’s latest Marvel series, Secret Invasion, threw a major MCU curveball last month when we learned that Don Cheadle’s James “Rhodey” Rhodes has been a Skrull parading as the War Machine hero for years in the Marvel timeline. The revelation is going to have us watching the Marvel movies in order with brand new eyes on the character for some time. Well, in a recently resurfaced interview from 2022, Cheadle was dropping some small hints on the subject.
When Cheadle walked the press line at the D23 Expo around this time last year, the actor was asked about where Rhodey might be during Armor Wars, one of the upcoming Marvel movies. Don Cheadle actually got quite candid with the journalist with a warning that we finally understand. Check it:
As ComicBook’s Brandon Davis shared in the the Instagram video, nearly a year ago, long before Secret Invasion’s release, Cheadle explained that Rhodey was going to be “in a very different place” by the time that Armor Wars rolls around and predicted the “very surprising” revelation that would be made about his longtime MCU character. Now, of course, we know that he was concealing the fact that Rhodey has been a Skrull as far back as Captain America: Civil War and we had no idea!
Marvel’s Secret Invasion Finale Wrapped Up The Story, But I Still Have A Rhodey Concern
Following the character development, or more like full-on swap, we’re so curious what Armor Wars, which was changed from being another Disney+ series to a movie back in September, is going to be like for Don Cheadle and his continued role as Rhodey, whom he has played since Iron Man 2. We imagine this is going to be a plotline that will be continued to be explored, especially considering the real Rhodes has been out of commission and held captive for such a long time.
Back in May, also before Secret Invasion revealed this new information about Rhodes, Don Cheadle teased that Armor Wars is going to “see what makes” the character tick and dig more into his “emotional and psychological” challenges. Rhodey has been a secondary character for over a decade of being part of the MCU, and we’re excited to see how Marvel decides to put the spotlight on the character and really flesh him out.
Armor Wars gets its title from a seven-issue Iron Man story-arc by David Michelinie and Bob Layton that was published from 1987 to 1988. Given the movie doesn’t yet have a director attached to it, filming is not quite underway. We will keep you updated here on CinemaBlend with all Marvel developments, including the future of Rhodey, a.k.a. War Machine, in the MCU.