The first trailer for “Avengers: Endgame” was released online on Monday and was viewed more than 500 million times in just 24 hours, setting a new record.Since the premiere, fans have taken to social media to share their theories and speculations about the film, characters, plot, alleged leaks, and more. However, one thing fans can’t seem to point out is the first visual of Chris Evans returning as Steve Rogers.Although it was announced as early as December that Evans would return as Steve in “Armageddon” with the release of multiple trailers, the character’s first meeting with the “Avengers” caused a stir online.Fan theories going viral on social media have led many to believe that the version of Steve Rogers seen in the film may not be the Captain America that viewers remember, but another variation.
Fans question Steve Rogers’ appearance
Shortly after the trailer was released, social media users began dissecting every frame of Steve Rogers, pointing out the subtle differences between his appearance in Avengers: Infinity War and his bearded appearance in the new movie footage.One of the most widely circulated theories has fans claiming, “That’s not Captain America. That’s Captain Fucking Hydra.”Another person pointed out that Sam Wilson and Butch Barnes’ reaction to seeing Steve again was rather unusual. One asked: “Is it just me or are Sam and Bucky not happy to see Steve? They know him best and do they sense something is wrong? Can we really have Hydra Captain in #AvengersEndgame?”Another said: “What if the Steve Rogers we saw in the Avengers Doomsday trailer pretended to be Steve from Universe 616… but he was actually Captain Hydra.”
Why fans think things are different
The speculation stems from Rogers’ visibly altered appearance in the trailer, including him not wearing his invisible uniform of dark street clothes. This led some viewers to believe that Marvel was deliberately withholding a major twist. The trailer also shows Steve Rogers summoning Mjolnir, seemingly proving that he’s still worthy of wielding Mjolnir.However, others have argued that the hammer seen in Avengers: Endgame may be different from the hammer Rogers famously lifted in Avengers: Endgame.
Hydra Captain Connection
Much of the speculation online also revolves around Steve actually playing the role of Captain of Hydra in Endgame after first adapting Marvel Comics’ “Long Live Hydra” dialogue.In 2016’s Steve Rogers: Captain America #1, writer Nick Spencer introduced the controversial Hydra Cap storyline, in which the Tesseract rewrote reality and turned Steve Rogers into a loyal Hydra agent. That version of Captain America was also able to wield Mjolnir.Some fans now believe Avengers: Doomsday could adapt elements of that storyline through the multiverse, introducing a variant of Doctor Doom’s agent Steve Rogers.Whether Steve Rogers in Avengers: Doomsday is the familiar multiverse variant of Captain America or Captain Hydra, fans will have to wait until December 18 to find out for sure the details.
