Clues 'Captain America: Civil War' Revealed About The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Sure, Captain America: Civil War is fun and exciting. But it also doubles as a secret treasure map, laying out hints and coded messages about everything to come in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's future films. If you missed all the cryptic clues encoded in Civil War, don't worry—we took notes.

Tony Stark recruiting Peter Parker for his battle against Cap's team was a cool way to introduce Spidey to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But it was also a hint at much more to come between the characters. As we saw in the post-credits sequence, Tony appears to have made good on his promise to help Peter upgrade his Spidey suit. And Tony's role as a mentor to Peter was a key element in the Civil War comics that inspired the movie. Plus there's that flirtation with Marissa Tomei's hot Aunt May; after all, this is Tony Stark we're talking about. It all adds up to the very real possibility that we'll be seeing a lot more of Tony in Spider-Man: Homecoming next year as he plays Dumbledore to young Peter's Harry Potter. We can't wait.

It was a lot of fun to see Martin Freeman in Civil War. After all, the dude has been awesome in everything from Sherlock to The Hobbit. But if you were disappointed that he didn't actually get much to do, don't worry, because his appearance here was just setting the table for 2018's Black Panther. That's because the character he plays, Everett Ross, isn't just some total rando, he's actually a well established character in the Black Panther mythos. Often used as comic relief (which fans of The Office know is a specialty of Freeman's), Ross becomes one of King T'Challa's most trusted and important political allies, to the point where he is eventually named regent of Wakanda in T'Challa's absence. We'll be seeing a lot more of Freeman, thank goodness.

One scene in Civil War that immediately caught our attention was the discussion between Vision and Scarlet Witch about the gem in his forehead. He may not know what it is, but we do: it's one of the Infinity Stones being gathered up by Thanos for Avengers: Infinity War. How will Thanos get his hands on it? The conversation gives us a clue, as Vision talks about learning to control the gem rather than letting it control him. This is ominous, for as long-time comic readers know, Vision originally did have a gem in his head—a gem which repeatedly allowed villains like Ultron to easily force him to betray and attack the Avengers. That bit of foreshadowing doesn't bode well for anyone.

This little detail was easy to miss, but the fact that one of the Hydra code words used to control the Winter Soldier was "homecoming" could have big implications. Given that the other code words seem to correlate to events in the Winter Soldier's life (like "freight car" referencing his supposed death in Captain America: The First Avenger), it's probably no coincidence that "homecoming" is also the subtitle of next year's Marvel-produced Spider-Man film. So what role could the Winter Soldier play in Spider-Man's origin story? Consider this: in the comics, Peter Parker's parents were S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who were killed while on a covert mission. Makes you think, huh?

At the end of Civil War, a new status quo seems to have been set up, with one underground group of heroes working from the shadows (Cap's New Avengers, who he rescued from the government's secret prison) and another officially sanctioned team (Iron Man's squad, reporting to Secretary of State Ross). This almost exactly mirrors events in the comics. So where did it lead? Eventually it set up the Dark Reign storyline, during which the "official" Avengers are taken over by supposedly reformed supervillains (a la Suicide Squad) used by the increasingly fascistic government to hunt down fugitive heroes. It looks like the next couple of years could be very uncomfortable for our favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe characters.

Remember Obadiah Stane, the jerk (played by Jeff Bridges) who stole Tony Stark's technology and tried to kill him in the first Iron Man? He could make a comeback in an unexpected way—by helping save Rhodey and creating the new War Machine. At the end of Civil War, the crippled James Rhodes is given a new lease on life thanks to cybernetic leg implants that help him regain movement. In the comics, similar tech—derived from Stane's Iron Monger suit—was used to create a new War Machine suit after Rhodey was severely injured in a fight, thus allowing him to walk and control other technology at will. Expect to see a new and very much improved War Machine in Avengers: Infinity War.

While the relationship between Captain America and Black Panther starts off a bit strained to say the least, by the end of the film the two have seemingly put aside their differences and become allies. In the comics, not only does Captain America convince T'Challa to join the Avengers, but when Cap surrenders his shield because it's "government property," it's T'Challa who forges him a new one out of Wakandan vibranium. With Cap giving up his shield in Civil War for essentially the same reason, we're guessing we'll be seeing Rogers again in Black Panther, getting a new shield and recruiting T'Challa for the fight against Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.

The hands-down coolest scene in Civil War was the moment when Ant-Man suddenly turns into a giant and starts literally stomping Iron Man's team into the tarmac—a twist that could hint at things to come in 2018's Ant-Man and the Wasp. In the comics, becoming Giant-Man is just one step on the career journey of the original Ant-Man, Hank Pym. Giving giant-sized powers to the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Scott Lang opens the door for other classic storylines from the comics, such as the time Giant-Man got stuck at giant size and couldn't return to normal. Attack of the 50-foot Paul Rudd, anyone?