Secret Invasion & Black Widow Have A Subtle Link Only Real Fans Caught
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is known for weaving a greater narrative throughout each TV show and movie, leaving Easter eggs for fans to spot. "Secret Invasion" is no different. The series is obviously connected to 2019's "Captain Marvel," which took the MCU back to the 1990s to introduce the Skrulls. "Secret Invasion" is filled with flashbacks from that decade, depicting Nick Fury's (Samuel L. Jackson) promise to help the Skrulls find a new, permanent home. While the series works to build off of the foundation set by "Captain Marvel," there is a subtle link to "Black Widow" that only real fans caught.
Toward the beginning of "Secret Invasion" Season 1, Episode 3 — "Betrayed," Fury pays a visit to a New York City diner in 1998. He's there to meet Varra (Charlayne Woodard), who slips him an envelope featuring a red stain. "This should put Dreykov's men on their heels," she says. Fury replies, "Looks like you already have." General Dreykov (Ray Winstone) is the main villain in 2021's "Black Widow," which begins with a flashback to 1995 when a young Natasha Romanoff (Ever Anderson) and Yelena Belova (Violet McGraw) are taken to the Red Room by Dreykov and his men. And Varra's mission involving Dreykov may go back to a promise made in Season 1, Episode 2 — "Promises."
Nick Fury may have known about Dreykov's Red Room in the 1990s
"Promises" begins in 1997 when Nick Fury stands in front of a group of Skrulls in Brixton, London, asking them to do everything they can to keep Earth safe while he and Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) search for a permanent home for the Skrulls. Varra is one of the Skrulls present, and while she is not shown taking the pledge, it appears she has joined Fury's crew in "Betrayed." Their secret diner meeting, complete with an envelope drop, suggests that Varra may have completed a mission for Fury, helping to keep Earth safe.
While it is unclear if Fury is looking to take down the Red Room in 1998, he does tell the Skrulls in "Promises" that Earth is in danger due to a serious threat. The Red Room is known for turning young women, like Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) and Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), into assassins and spies that could infiltrate any organization. While Fury does not specify the threat, the Red Room and the Black Widow program may be on his radar, especially if he and his team are going after Dreykov. Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz), Natasha, and Yelena take down Dreykov and the Red Room in 2016 during "Black Widow." As "Secret Invasion" points out, there is always the possibility that Skrulls had a helping hand in the Red Room's destruction.