Captain Marvel Plot Details Confirm Ben Mendelsohn’s Villainous Role

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is about to get a little bigger.

On March 8th, 2019, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s standalone Captain Marvel movie will take to the skies, and completely redefine the parameters of the MCU with its 90s setting and villainous ensemble.

It’s one toplined by Star Wars alum Ben Mendelsohn, who is officially on board to play Talos, leader of the Skrulls. They’re the shape-shifting aliens who have spent the past 10 years on the sidelines, patiently waiting for their time in the sun. And now, thanks to the Captain Marvel solo movie, the Skrulls are about to be incorporated into the MCU in a major way.

Or so says the updated plot synopsis from EW (h/t MCU Cosmic), which begins by outlining Marvel’s Carol Danvers origin story:

Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Captain Marvel sidesteps the traditional origin-story template, and when it begins, Carol already has her powers. She’s left her earthly life behind to join an elite Kree military team called Starforce, led by Jude Law’s enigmatic commander.

On the other end of the moral spectrum is Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos, while we understand Jude Law’s “enigmatic commander” is actually Captain Mar-Vell. He’s supposedly instrumental in recruiting Carol Danvers to the Kree cause, as they spearhead the elite Starforce and attempt to ward off a full-blown Skrull invasion.

Per EW:

But before long, Carol finds herself back on Earth with new questions about her past. And she’s got a formidable enemy in the form of the Skrulls — the notorious Marvel baddies made all the more dangerous by their shape-shifting abilities. Ben Mendelsohn plays their leader Talos, who spearheads a Skrull invasion of Earth.

Captain Marvel is scheduled for take-off on March 8th, and only then will we have a better understanding of how the MCU’s 21st installment relates to the so-far untitled Avengers 4. Our guess? The Quantum Realm.