Marvel Cinematic Universe Theory: Black Widow Is A Skrull

For the most part, the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is shrouded in mystery, largely due to the uncertainty surrounding where Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4 will leave the universe and its characters.

But one thing we do know is that the Skrulls - an extra-terrestrial race of shape-shifters - are coming in the near future, leading many to speculate that one (or more) of the MCU's characters has been an alien this whole time.

But who will it be?

Search the Internet long enough and you'll probably be able to find a theory that argues for each one of the Avengers to be revealed as a Skrull, and frankly, it really could be anyone - that's the beauty of this inevitable plot twist. But, for reasons we'll get into shortly, Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow stands out as one of the more likely candidates to be Skrull-ified.

The character's dark past already heightens the air of mystery that surrounds her and when you look at her history in the MCU (and the possibilities surrounding her impending solo movie) the pieces start falling into place.

The Skrulls are an alien race of shape-shifters who can mimic the appearance of any being they choose, as well as replicating their voice and keeping their memories. In the Secret Invasion comic-book storyline, Skrulls were able to successfully impersonate many of Earth's greatest superheroes - including Elektra - without anybody realising.

Throughout their many years in Marvel Comics, there have been examples of Skrulls who could replicate superpowers (like super-strength), and Skrulls who couldn't, so when they debut in the MCU, that trait could go either way.

At the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel revealed that the Skrulls would be the primary antagonists of the upcoming Captain Marvel movie, which is set in the 1990s and will release in March 2019 - right between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4.

And for now, that's all we know for certain about the Skrulls appearing in the MCU. But since we know they're imminent, a huge "character X has been a Skrull all along" reveal is certainly coming at some point down the line, and here, we're going to outline why we think that character will be Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow.