Avengers: Infinity War ended by leaving all fans shattered. Following the apparent death of nearly half of the Avengers, everyone was left wondering how the next film in the franchise, the still untitled Avengers 4, would unfold. Given that all the answers are held within the upcoming film, there is a lot of secrecy surrounding it.
However, now, we have at least one official confirmation about the film: a deceased Marvel Cinematic Universe villain will briefly return in Avengers 4 --Frank Grillo's Brock Rumlow, aka Crossbones.
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The news comes from Grillo directly, who confirmed his return to the Avengers franchise during a podcast interview with UFC Unfiltered. "He makes an appearance in the next Avengers movie," the actor said, "but it’s a flashback."
Therefore, there are no resurrections involved for the character, who perished in Captain America: Civil War after Scarlet Witch contained the blast of his bomb to himself only. Grillo first teased that Crossbones would return to the MCU in some capacity back in September 2017, but the actor hadn't revealed more details than that. Now, we know that his return will feature in Avengers 4, and through the use of flashbacks.
Of course, given all the mystery and clues surrounding the final Avengers film, one of the prevailing theories is that the movie will feature some form of time travel. Grillo's confirmation that Crossbones will return via flashback could therefore be interpreted as more fuel to that particular fire.
Brock Rumlow first appeared in Captain America: The Winter Soldier as a member of Captain America's secret S.T.R.I.K.E. team. However, the character was later revealed to be a Hydra sleeper agent, and he would later return in Civil War with a plot that would incite the Sokovia Accords dispute. The opening of Civil War teased that Steve Rogers' New Avengers had been after Crossbones for a while, so perhaps this new flashback will shed some light on what the villain was up to in-between the two films.
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The sequel to Avengers: Infinity War will release on May 3, 2019. Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, the film stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Bettany, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders, Benedict Wong, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lily, Tom Holland and Anthony Mackie.
(via MCU Cosmic)