Iron Man 3’s Lingering 11-Year-Old Villain Mystery Has Only Gotten More Complicated 3 Phases Later

Summary

• Secret Invasion
  revealed that the Skrull invaders gained access to Extremis, but didn’t explain when or how, and the Skrulls didn’t use it to its full potential.
• Extremis soldiers are still active out there in the MCU, yet most movies and shows ignore the implications of their existence.
• Armor Wars
  might revisit Extremis by way of a vengeful Iron Man enemy who continues Aldrich Killian’s original plans.

Secret Invasion brought back Iron Man3‘s most dangerous MCU weapon and immediately ignored the danger it posed. Despite being based on one of Marvel’s most famous comic book events, the MCU’s Secret Invasion was poorly received by fans and critics alike. The Secret Invasion Disney+ series didn’t do its name justice, and it gave little importance to the few MCU connections it contained, including Maria Hill, James Rhodes, the Kree-Skrull war that inspired the Skrulls’ invasion, and a few MCU easter eggs.

Some of Secret Invasion‘s easter eggs and references came in the form of Gravik’s first Super Skrull powers. Gravik used genetic material from three individuals to gain their abilities: Groot, which provides Gravik with super-stretching powers, Thor: The Dark World‘s runaway Frost Beast, which enhances Gravik’s strength, and an Extremis soldier from Iron Man 3, which provides Gravik with the ability to heat up his body, shoot blasts of fire, and regenerate at an incredible rate.

The MCU Made Extremis So Much More Complicated After Iron Man 3

Extremis’ Was Inexplicably Ignored After Aldrich Killian’s Death

Tony Stark and Pepper Potts succeeded in stopping Aldrich Killain from mass-producing Extremis and creating whole armies of Extremis-powered soldiers. However, not all Extremis test subjects died in Iron Man 3. Yet, Tony Stark quickly moved on after Aldrich Killian’s defeat, and he never mentioned the possibility of Extremis being replicated by other villains. Years later, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings featured a cameo by an Extremis soldier, who can be seen battling a Black Widow in an underground fighting tournament. Evidently, Extremis-powered individuals are walking free like ticking bombs in the MCU, and nobody seems to care.

In 2023, Secret Invasion brought back Extremis’ abandoned plotline, revealing that the Skrull invaders somehow got their hands on Extremis, which they use to heal themselves quickly and hide their extraterrestrial physiology from humans when they get injured. How the Skrulls gained access to Extremis, and how they learned about its existence in the first place, is yet to be confirmed. Skrulls are so adaptable that they can adopt basically any superpower, but they still need to get access to the necessary samples in order to clone their properties.

Will Extremis Ever Appear In The MCU Again?

Extremis Will Likely Continue To Pop Up For Small Cameos In Future Movies And Shows

The fact that G’iah now possesses countless superpowers and abilities suggests that future Skrull appearances will overlook Extremis in favor of the concept of “Super Skrulls”, making the Skrulls’ acquisition of Extremis very unlikely to be shown on screen anytime soon. On the other hand, Extremis could be revisited soon by the upcoming MCU movie Armor Wars, where Rhodey will protect Iron Man’s legacy and possibly fight to recover Tony Stark’s technology from various villains. Instead of another Iron Man armor, one of these villains could acquire Extremis and attempt to resume Aldrich Killian’s Iron Man 3 plans.