Seven years after Marvel’s What If…? have alluded to the parasitic terrorist organization, even though it has been largely wiped out.
After the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, HYDRA was essentially a threat defeated (though, of course, many have thought that before). The Avengers were called together at the beginning of Age of Ultron to seek out and destroy any hidden HYDRA agents, namely Baron Von Strucker. Ultron kills Strucker, and when Phase 3 shifts to more severe alien threats, HYDRA is pushed to the backburner. However, “if a head is cut off, two more shall take its place,” and with HYDRA references starting to make their way back into the MCU after the defeat of Thanos, there is every chance that the organization still slumbers.
Why does HYDRA still have such an influence on the MCU? Much like Captain America was the first Avenger, HYDRA was the first overarching threat to the MCU. HYDRA’s thread ran through many movies from Phases 1 and 2, tying together characters and motivations that drove the storylines forward. Though it appears to be defeated, there is every chance that HYDRA will resurface as an enemy entity again; it is the organization’s nature to persevere, biding its time in the shadows.
Phase 4 pursuits such as the Captain America 4.
Some theories have also placed Xu Xialing and Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine at the forefront of a new HYDRA organization. Fans noticed that Shang Chi’s sister had a poster of the Red Skull in her office in Macao, leading many to believe that she could have been influenced by his beliefs and may become part of a new strand of HYDRA. Even more interesting is Contessa de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who has appeared in Black Widow and Falcon and the Winter Soldier to recruit John Walker and Yelena Belova to an unknown organization. In Marvel Comics, de Fontaine claims the role of Madame Hydra, making her presence in multiple Phase 4 storylines an indication of how she could be a major threat in the future.
Whether or not HYDRA will actually return to MCU’s Phase 4 as a serious threat, it is clear that the organization continues to define storylines in the MCU. Perhaps, as such a large threat to S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers, it simply has had lasting repercussions on the events and characters. But more than likely, these easter eggs and references scattered throughout Phase 4 are not inconsequential, and more than 7 years after their supposed defeat in Captain America: Winter Soldier, HYDRA will rise again.
