There are hundreds of questions that Marvel fans are still asking about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but few are as big as, “What happened to Red Skull at the end of Captain America: The First Avenger?” For those that don’t remember, the disfigured German supervillain touched the Cosmic Cube at the end of the movie and it appeared that he was transported to another world. Obviously Marvel Studios wants to keep a lid on the truth until exactly when they want you to know, but that doesn’t mean that the star who played the character, Hugo Weaving, doesn’t have a theory of his own.
Yesterday afternoon I had the pleasure of attending a press event for the upcoming Wachowski Starship/Tom Tykwer film Cloud Atlas, and while sitting down for a one-on-one interview with Weaving I took the opportunity to ask him what he thought happened to Red Skull. He began his explanation by saying that what he most interesting about the character was that it wasn’t just about world domination for him, but instead a quest to control the power of the Cosmic Cube and be among the gods. Said Weaving, “He wants to be up there and he’s saying to Cap, [in German accent] ‘Come on! You’re pretty cool! Come on, man! We’re better than this! We can go up here!’ So that’s what interested me.” This led to his theory about Red Skull’s final destination. “He’d probably be in Valhalla – that’s where he wants to be. But who knows!”
By having Red Skull teleported away at the end of Captain America instead of being killed, however, Marvel Studios was sending a clear message: Red Skull will be coming back at some point (not that comics have ever had trouble resurrecting characters from the dead, but the point stands). Some have guessed that he’ll be back for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but others think that he’ll be saved for The Avengers 2. During my interview I asked Weaving what his contract situation was like with Marvel, as most actors in those films have multi-picture deals set up to keep them locked up for future movies.
“I think anyone who signs up for Marvel probably would be obliged to sign a certain deal for three or four pictures or whatever, or more, actually, in some of those cases,” Weaving said. “But that doesn’t mean it’s going to come to fruition.” Postulating about where Red Skull will show up next, he continued, saying, “There hasn’t been a Captain America 2 yet, and anyway if there was you would probably introduce another villain. So I don’t think I’d be in another Cap America movie. The only thing – the possibility you might want to bring Red Skull back into an Avengers thing. That’s also tied in."
But Weaving also added something that fans won’t be too happy to hear. “To be honest, I don’t know that I’d want to go back there,” he told me. While he didn’t fully explain why he felt this way, he had nothing but the nicest things to say about working on Captain America: The First Avenger and portraying the character.
I had a good time and it was a good thing to do. I was really thrilled that I did it. I loved working with Joe [Johnston] again, it was great to meet a lot of those actors…it was kind of a different experience for me being in that world, to play…and he’s a villain. I don’t describe many characters like that, but this is like an uber-villain. This guy thinks Hitler’s a pussy [laughs]. He’s a villain. So that’s why I did it, I was like ‘Let’s try this.’ To play a role like that, that’s fun.
Stay tuned here on Cinema Blend to read my full interview with Hugo Weaving, which will be posted next week when Cloud Atlas heads into theaters.
