Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Black Panther: Wakanda Foreverfocuses on Shuri’s (Letitia Wright) journey to become the new Black Panther and embrace her brother’s legacy. However, the movie also effectively exposes how imperialist intentions mark the United States' international policy. As one of the most powerful nations, the U.S. wants to control all the natural resources it can and build the most powerful weapons anyone could imagine. So it’s no wonder they are after Wakanda’s vibranium. And while it’s no surpriseWakanda Foreverputs U.S. Imperialism into question, it’s curious to see the character representing this authoritarian stance is none other than Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus).
Valentina has become an essential piece of Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, mirroring Nick Fury’s (Samuel L. Jackson) role in the “Infinity Saga” by offering some connective tissue between different movies and TV shows. However, contrary to Fury, Valentina seems to put the U.S. interests ahead of the safety of the entire humankind. AsWakanda Foreverreveals, Valentina is the head of the CIA and is willing to do anything to ensure the U.S. remains a warmongering potency. That’s a troubling perspective, especially considering Valentina’s previous and future MCU appearances.
Where Did Valentina Show Up Before ‘Wakanda Forever’?
Valentina first showed up inThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The series explores the retirement of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and what it means to be Captain America. In the series, after Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) refuses to become Captain America, the U.S. government decides to give the shield to another soldier, John Walker (Wyatt Russell). Walker, however, didn’t understand the legacy that came with the title of Captain America. Instead, he was just a good soldier who followed orders. So, when faced with a pressure he was never trained to bear, Walker snapped and killed a man who was already surrendering to him.
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To save face, the U.S. threw Walker under the bus, washing their bloody hands and pinning everything on a supposedly evil man. Reality is often so simple, though, and Valentina used the situation to manipulate Walker into becoming a new kind of antihero, the U.S. Soldier. Valentina tells Walker in the show that the world needs heroes who are not afraid of crossing lines for their country, gives him a new uniform, and coins the moniker U.S. Agent. In short, by recruiting Walker as the U.S. Agent, Valentina proved her reach. After all, she helped to clear Walker’s record and put him into the service of the U.S., not an easy feat after the world witnessed “Captain America” bashing someone’s skull with his shield.
Valentina showed up again in the end-credit scenes ofBlack Widow. During the short scene, we learn that Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) works for Valentina as an assassin for hire. In the movie, Valentina reveals that Yelena’s next target is none other than Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner). During the events ofHawkeye, we learn that Valentina was hired by Eleanor Bishop (Vera Farmiga), who works directly with Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio), the Kingpin of New York. That means Valentina is powerful enough to go after an Avenger and is not afraid of mingling with criminals to get what she wants. That’s already a dangerous combination, but sinceWakanda Foreverreveals she’s the head of the CIA, not even the law could stop Valentina from toying with the lives of the MCU heroes.
What’s Valentina’s Goal in ‘Wakanda Forever’?
Valentina is focused, fierce, and highly pragmatic. She doesn’t bother with petty things such as morals when doing her job, which makes her the perfect choice to lead the CIA. The intelligence department is historically known for using shady means to get to the ends that best benefit the U.S. So, with someone like Valentina in charge, the CIA becomes one of the most dangerous players in the MCU. InWakanda Forever, Valentina is working to find some vibranium for the U.S., leading her to steal Riri Wiliams' (Dominique Thorne) MIT project, the only radar in the world capable of finding the rare metal.
Valentina also spies on Everett Ross (Martin Freeman), her ex-husband, to gather intelligence on Wakanda. And when questioned by Ross about the atrocities the U.S. could commit if it were the only country in the world with access to vibranium, Valentina says she dreams of that day. Valentina obviously doesn’t care about people, only about U.S. military supremacy. In the future, that might lead to war with Wakanda since Shuri’s keeping Talokan a secret means the African nation will be blamed for Namor’s (Tenoch HuertaMejía) attacks on U.S. soil. And to make the future more frightening, we know already Valentina is putting together a deadly team of antiheroes.
Valentina and the Thunderbolts
One of the most-anticipated projects for Phase 5 of the MCU isThunderbolts, a movie focused on the team of antiheroes Valentina is putting together. So far, Marvel Studios confirmed the team comprises Yelena Belova, John Walker, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Red Guardian (David Harbour), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), andHarrison Fordas Thaddeus ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross. We still don’t know how or why Valentina will gather all these powerful people in the same place, but before the Thunderbolts can supposedly save the world on July 28, 2025, they might clash with Sam Wilson, the new Captain America. That’s because the Thunderbolts areexpected to appear inCaptain America: New World Order, set to premiere on August 12, 2025.
It makes sense for Valentina’s Thunderbolts to face Captain America. Under Valentina’s command, the Thunderbolts will fight for America’s right to crush every other nation under its military boots. Valentina is not interested in what’s right, only in what’s good for her country. However, Captain America’s legacy is about defending the values America represents, such as freedom and justice, disregarding frontiers. In short, Valentina and the Thunderbolts might reflect how the U.S. frequently acts, while Captain America tries to spread what the U.S. aims to become since its independence, a shining beacon of peace and hope for the entire world.
WithWakanda Foreverrevealing Valentina controls the CIA, Valentina becomes more dangerous than ever. We can’t wait to see how she’ll keep working against non-American nations and heroes in future MCU films and TV shows.
