During the penultimate episode of Marvel's The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, we were introduced to a character who is expected to emerge as a major new player in the MCU moving forward: Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.
Madame Hydra, as she's known in the comics, was played by multiple-time Emmy Award-winner Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and although a big cameo had been teased for the episode, her appearance still came as a surprise to fans.
Now, head writer Malcolm Spellman has revealed that he was originally going to use a completely different character until Marvel voiced another idea.
"That was [Marvel's] suggestion," Spellman told Everyone Loves a Good Story. "We wrote a shady-ass CIA character, and Marvel was like, 'It should be Val.' And one thing I give Marvel credit for, they are fans just like we are. They be knowing certain sh-t because they geek out. They're like, 'Oh man, what if it was Val?' Then the whole room was like, 'Oh, f-ck! Can we do that? Can we use Val?' Then they know they got one."
"But I think that's why it hit so hard, because she appeared like an Easter egg," he added.
Val was actually supposed to debut in Black Widow as a "dark" counterpart to Nick Fury, and now seems clear that Marvel was waiting for another opportunity to introduce the character. We still don't know what her endgame is, but the prevailing theory is that she's planning to assemble a group of super-powered individuals for some nefarious purpose, and John Walker (Wyatt Russell) is her first recruit.
What kind of impact do you think Miss Allegra de Fontaine will have on the MCU? Let us know in the comments