Marvel Studios officially revealed the identity of Secret Invasion‘s main Skrull villain played by Kingsley Ben-Adir.
Secret Invasion will be the next Disney+ project to come from Marvel Studios after the first “crossover event” series in its history. Based on the comics of the same name, Earth may be up against one of its biggest threats yet.
The comic book storyline saw the Skrulls infiltrate Earth, using their natural shape-shifting ability to replace people in positions of power to takeover the planet as their new home.
Up until now, the Skrulls have only ever been seen as friendly in the MCU, most notably in Captain Marvel. But soon, fans will be introduced to a whole new side of the iconic alien race as they infiltrate humanity in Secret Invasion.
Disney+’s Secret Invasion Reveals Its Skrull Villains
Vanity Fair published new details on Marvel Studios’ Secret Invasion, which included the first official confirmation and details of the Skrull villain Gravik behind the Disney+ series, played by One Night in Miami‘s Kingsley Ben-Adir.
Gravik leads a group of Skrull extremists who have broken away from the Talos-led peaceful shape-shifters introduced in Captain Marvel. The extremists, who were radicalized by Ben-Adir’s Skrull, are described as “tired of asking… [and] waiting.”
The reason behind Gravik’s parting from Talos’ faction is to “seize the resources they need,” initially with stealth and their shape-shifting powers, and later with violence.
Marvel Studios previously spoiled the identity of Ben-Adir’s villain with an image captioned “Rebel Skrull leader Gravik” that was released after D23 2022, showing off the shape-shifting antagonist in his true form.
The plot is said to have parallels to stories from across real history that have seen displaced groups become divided and reach a breaking point when patience and diplomacy eventually fail.
Talos actor Ben Mendelsohn explained how the tension between Skrull groups could in some way be said to mirror that of “the Cold War stuff:”
“I think any time that you get cultures that have significant tensions between groups of people, then you can find a corollary. The Cold War stuff is the big one that jumps out, but there is plenty of strife between groups of people that this addresses.”
Secret Invasion executive producer Jonathan Schwartz explained how Gravik has set up his bases in “decommissioned radioactive sites within Russia” – where much of the series takes place – due to Skrulls’ ability to withstand radioactivity:
“Skrulls are much more able to withstand radioactivity, and there are a ton of decommissioned radioactive sites within Russia. That’s where Gravik has set up his base of operations.”
A recent report from The Cosmic Circus claimed within one of these locations the Skrulls will be building an underground device requiring immense power – the exact purpose of which remains unknown.
Vanity Fair’s report also had some new details to offer regarding Olivia Colman’s character who “has a past with Nick Fury,” working both with and against him.
The actress will play “a high-ranking agent in the British Intelligence Service” called Special Agent Sonya Falsworth:
“She is a high-ranking agent in the British Intelligence Service who has a past with Nick Fury. Sometimes [she’s] working with Nick Fury, and sometimes working against him as their goals either align or collide.”
What Are the Skrulls Planning in Secret Invasion?
The Skrulls are renowned as a race of villains in Marvel Comics, so when they were introduced as peaceful, displaced people in the 90s-set Captain Marvel, many were taken aback. They even became close allies to Nick Fury over the years, filling in for him and Maria Hill in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Fans are about to learn that, as is true for all peoples, how there are both good and bad Skrulls with Kingsley Ben-Adir’s character set to serve as the face of this new extremist faction. Just like the Secret Invasion comics, this group will seemingly infiltrate humanity, this time to gather certain resources, likely for their mystery underground device.
Going back to Marvel Comics, Secret Invasion revolved around the mystery of who was actually a Skrull imposter. That will undoubtedly be the case in the streaming series, too, as Gravik’s forces infiltrate Earth. Although, things will be quite different without the Avengers involved this time around – except for Don Cheadle’s War Machine.
The Skrulls’ goal within the comics was to take over Earth as their new home, and that may be the master plan for Kingsley Ben-Adir’s Gravik as well. However, whatever device the Skrulls are reportedly building seems to be at the heart of their plan, and they will likely replace people in positions of power to get the resources they need.
Of all the main characters confirmed for Secret Invasion, one obvious contender to be a Skrull imposter based on this storyline comes with Martin Freeman’s Everett Ross. After all, if it’s advanced resources the Skrulls are after, Ross’ connections to Wakanda may be able to help facilitate that.
Secret Invasion premieres on June 21, exclusively on Disney+.
