As there’s so much to deal with in Avengers: Endgame, there are many important moments in the narrative that are not just brushed over but are completely absent. One big one is Captain America’s mission to go back in time and replace the six Infinity Stones to their proper points in the timeline. This sounds like a pretty tough job for just one hero to complete, especially when it took 10 people to pinch them in the first place.
Specifically, fans want to know what happened when Steve Rogers returned the Soul Stone to Vormir. This must’ve meant that he came face-to-skull with his old foe Red Skull, right? Well, it sure seems like it, as the Russo brothers have confirmed that this is the only course of events that makes sense, as Johann Schmidt is the guardian of the gem. Anthony Russo even joked that the stingy villain is the reason Black Widow couldn’t be resurrected.
Per CinemaBlend:
Joe Russo: He would have to encounter Red Skull. And nobody knows what the rules are when you return the Soul Stone.
Anthony Russo: Nobody knows. But knowing Red Skull, he probably has a no-money-back policy.
The Russos have previously clarified that returning the Soul Stone doesn’t mean that the life sacrificed in order to claim it in the first place is restored, so Natasha Romanoff’s heroic death still stands following Endgame‘s conclusion. It’s cruel, but the idea that Red Skull might deliberately have made up this rule just to spite Cap, after their shared history in World War II, kind of makes sense.
Of course, there’s also a lot of criticism around the fact that Black Widow died in the first place, as some fans think the only woman in the original line-up deserved better than to be killed off so early into Avengers: Endgame. At least we’ve got that Black Widow prequel on its way though. And as for Red Skull, we’d love a Marvel One-Shot short documenting how the incredibly awkward reunion between Cap and the former HYDRA head went down. Fingers crossed, eh?