Deadpool & Wolverine's New 'Infinity Gauntlet' Could Change Everything
Contains spoilers for "Deadpool & Wolverine"
The final trailer for "Deadpool & Wolverine" has confirmed the return of one "X-Men" fan favorite and hinted at the return of Spider-Man. It also helped reveal the film's main antagonist. She is Cassandra Nova ("The Crown" actress Emma Corrin), the telekinetic twin of Charles Xavier, and she bears the reality-warping sling ring. With it, she could quite literally change the Marvel Cinematic Universe forever, as embedded within the ring are the reality and time stones from the Infinity Gauntlet.
That means Cassandra wields an enormous amount of power over the very fabric of reality and the universal continuity itself. But it looks like those powers won't solely be hers to wield. This might explain why Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) is able to pop into Deadpool's (Ryan Reynolds) frame of reality, and how they can use portals to move between dimensions.
The rings were revealed for the first time by Ryan Reynolds in his Instagram story but can be glimpsed briefly on Nova in the trailer below.
How did Cassandra Nova lay her hands on the time and reality stones, if when we last saw them, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) had returned them to the place where they'd lain pre-snap? Her ability to hop between locales in the multiverse might have something to do with that. Until then, audiences can only be sure of this — both stones have traveled far from their humble origin points in the MCU.
The Reality and Time Stones have seen a lot of action
Before they were a part of the Infinity Gauntlet, the reality and time stones once resided in separate universes with different users. Only Thanos (Josh Brolin) and his hunger for power can bring them all together. As fans of the MCU know, the reality stone is embedded in an ancient weapon called an Aether. The Aether is wielded by Malekith the Accursed (Christopher Eccleston), who plans to return the world to a state of rebirth using it, only to have the weapon hidden. Later, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) disturbs its resting place, she becomes infected with its magic. Malekith draws that energy out of her and uses it to face off against Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in "Thor: The Dark World." When Malekith is killed, Thor and his team seal the Aether in a lantern. The Collector watches over it until Thanos becomes involved.
Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) first encounters the time stone in "Doctor Strange." It is a part of the Eye of Agamotto, which he eventually masters and uses to defeat Dormammu (voiced by Cumberbatch). Strange finds himself wearing it, although he decides to return it to the Masters of the Mystic Arts' base in Kamar-Taj. The stones are soon reunited thanks to Thanos and separated thanks to Steve Rogers.
What sort of powers will they grant Cassandra, and will they be too much to bear? Audiences will find out when the R-rated "Deadpool & Wolverine" opens on July 26.