Ever since the franchise’s first installment, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has conditioned fans to stick around to the very end of the credits. While some of these stingers are just throwaway gags that don’t contribute anything at all in the grand scheme of things, Spider-Man: Far From Home dropped two massive revelations after the movie had first faded to black.
As well as unveiling the return of J.K. Simmons’ fan favorite J. Jonah Jameson, who immediately revealed Peter Parker’s secret to the world, Far From Home also delivered the bombshell that Nick Fury was being impersonated by Captain Marvel‘s Talos the entire time, with the one-eyed head of S.H.I.E.L.D. seen manning a ship in outer space.
This instantly led to speculation that an adaptation of “Secret Invasion” could be on the cards, and those rumors have only intensified following yesterday’s news that Samuel L. Jackson would be heading to Disney Plus to headline his own TV series. The MCU’s small screen output looks to be striking a balance between new heroes and familiar faces, and despite being announced less than 24 hours ago, all of the pieces for the Nick Fury spinoff are already in place.
As ScreenRant explains:
Most viewers assumed that, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Nick Fury had now moved on from SHIELD to form a successor called SWORD. In the comics, the “Sentient World Observation and Response Department” are dedicated to protecting the world from extraterrestrial threats, and they pride themselves on making SHIELD look like the boy scouts. They’re based on an orbital space station called the Peak, from which they intercept potential invaders.
It would make sense for Earth’s government to see the need for such a defense in the MCU; Earth has been ravaged by the Chitauri, devastated by Thanos’ snap, and ultimately became site of the climactic final battle between the Avengers and the armies of Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. Humanity no longer believe they are alone in the universe – and they are well aware other species are malevolent in the extreme.
Fans will know that Fury was integral to the development and creation of the Sentient World Observation and Response Department, better known as S.W.O.R.D., in the comics, and it’s already been confirmed that they’ll be debuting in WandaVision and are widely expected to play a prominent role throughout Phase Four and beyond. Not only that, but given the events of the Infinity Saga, it makes complete sense from a story perspective to have Nick Fury shift his focus from protecting our planet on the ground to overseeing its defense from above the atmosphere.
