Could Red Skull Appear In 'Avengers: Infinity War'?

The Red Skull, Captain America's arch nemesis, only appeared in one Marvel Cinematic Universe film – Captain America: The First Avenger. Despite rumors that Red Skull might return in films like Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the character remains sight unseen. Now, a new rumor suggests Red Skull could appear in Avengers: Infinity War. Is Red Skull in Infinity War? Probably not, but let's speculate wildly.

Hugo Weaving made a pretty good Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger. Unlike most other MCU characters, however, he's yet to make another appearance. Part of this is likely due to Weaving, who seems uninterested in popping-up in another Marvel film. While the actor signed up for more than one film, he's previously said "it's not something I would want to do again," adding:

"I think I've done my dash with that sort of film. It was good to do it and try it out, but to be honest, it's not the sort of film I seek out and really am excited by."

Of course, if need be, the character could always be recast (remember those unfounded rumors that Robert Redford's character in The Winter Soldier would turn out to be Red Skull in disguise? I do!). While Red Skull has sat on the bench for most of the MCU, a new rumor has surfaced suggesting he might pop-up in Avengers: Infinity War. ScreenRant has highlighted that the Avengers: Infinity War Prelude comic reveals what really happened to Red Skull at the end of The First Avenger. Here's how the scene plays out in the film:

The film makes it appear the Red Skull is destroyed by the Tesseract. The Prelude comic, however, is slightly different:

It could be argued that this panel reveals Red Skull wasn't destroyed, but rather sucked up into space. This, in turn, could indicate the Red Skull is still alive, somewhere out there. The fact that this is an Avengers: Infinity War prequel story could indicate that readers are being set up for the return of the Red Skull.

Or, you know, it could just be a quick recap of what happened in The First Avenger. In my humble opinion, this is merely a recap, and not an indication that Red Skull is coming back. Infinity War seems stuffed to the gills already – there are 76 characters in the film, for crying out loud. Why add Red Skull as well?

We'll know for certain if Red Skull makes another appearance when Avengers: Infinity War opens April 27, 2018.