Skaar’s Future In The MCU Is Steeped In Mystery, But What Could It Entail

After an initial appearance in 2007’s What If Planet Hulk? #1, Skaar first appeared in canon Marvel continuity in 2008’s World War Hulk #5. The son of the Hulk and the extraterrestrial shadow warrior Caiera, Skaar emerged from a cocoon on the remains of the destroyed planet Sakaar, where the events of World War Hulk had occurred, and he’s had an eventful 17 years since his debut. In the MCU, however, little is known about him. His only appearance came in the ninth and final episode of 2022’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, “Whose Show Is This?” Portrayed by Wil Deusner, he was introduced at a Walters family celebration but didn’t say a word and hasn’t reappeared since. It made fans wonder what Marvel Studios’ plans for the character are in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Skaar is an incredibly powerful character in the comic books. In addition to having strength, durability, endurance, stamina, and healing powers comparable to his father and being a gifted swordsman and unarmed combatant, he also possesses a source of energy called the Old Power, inherited from his mother, which grants him the ability to manipulate tectonic energy and the earth itself​​​​​. His role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe could be significant if Marvel Studios allowed him to shine. There are many ways he could impact the MCU.

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A Key Role In A Hulk-Centric Arc

Should a Hulk-centric story occur in the MCU, Skaar is almost sure to be a part of it.

A Hulk-centric movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe remains a complex proposition due to movie rights issues (distribution rights for Hulk are tangled up with Universal Pictures, unlike most MCU characters). However, if another one finally happens, or if a Hulk-centric story occurs as a secondary plot in an MCU project, Skaar is almost sure to play a part in it.

For instance, although he didn’t play much of a part in the World War Hulk storyline in Marvel’s comic books, should one happen in the MCU, he could join his father as part of the Warbound group, taking revenge on Hulk’s behalf for whatever injustice causes him to go rogue in the live-action franchise.

Skaar also recently appeared in leaked MCU concept art alongside his father and She-Hulk in a medieval-looking village filled with Hulk-like characters. It suggests he’s at least being considered to play a part in 2026’s Avengers: Doomsday. Should that movie have a Hulk subplot, there’s every chance Skaar will be a pivotal character.

He Could Join Up With A Super-Team

Skaar could team up with the likes of the Young Avengers or even the Dark Avengers as he did in the comic books.

In Marvel’s comic books, Skaar is recruited by Norman Osborne to be a member of the Dark Avengers (it turns out he’s a double agent helping the New Avengers, but he joins the team regardless). Should the Thunderbolts in the MCU evolve into the Dark Avengers (which many are theorizing the asterisk in the movie’s title is hinting towards), perhaps Skaar will join the team in the future.

However, the more likely scenario is that Skaar joins the MCU’s Young Avengers. The franchise is becoming stacked with young heroes — Kamala Khan, the team’s touted leader Kate Bishop, Cassie Lang, Riri Williams, and Billy Maximoff, for example — and Kamala Khan began recruiting for a young team in the mid-credits scene of 2023’s The Marvels, so their introduction is likely imminent. Skaar would make a tremendous addition to the team, giving them a powerhouse tank-type member they otherwise wouldn’t have.

He Could Become A Villain To His Father

Having Skaar fighting his father would provide a profoundly personal plot that would resonate with audiences.

In 2014’s Hulk #7 comic, the Doc Green version of Hulk drained the gamma from Skaar’s body as part of his quest to rid the world of gamma-powered beings. However, he returned in 2021’s Gamma Flight #1, mutated and radicalized by Emil Blonsky’s Project Green Spring. The organization restored Skaar’s Gamma radiation, which transformed his body into a monstrous form, and he went on a rampage at their behest.

If something like that happens in the MCU, having Skaar fight his father would make for a profound and intriguing story that would resonate with audiences on a personal level. It would also make for a shocking turn of events, as his brief introduction presented him as placid — but that could have been Marvel Studios’ way of making a potential villain turn all the more surprising. Rivalries between relatives is a recurring theme in the MCU — Thor has fought his adoptive brother Loki and his sister Hela, T’Challa fought his cousin Killmonger, the adoptive sisters Gamora and Nebula regularly butted heads, and even Tony Stark referred to Ultron as “Junior” — so this would continue that theme.

Other Possibilities For The Character

Given that the MCU doesn’t always base its stories on comic book precedent, Skaar’s future in the franchise has infinite possibilities.

Skaar could become a multiversal wildcard with Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars coming in 2026 and 2027, respectively. As stated already, he’s appeared in leaked concept art for the former, so there may be plans in place to have him play a big part in the fight against Robert Downey Jr’s Doctor Doom and in the inevitable conflicts on Battleworld. His Old Power could even be pivotal in stabilizing Battleworld, which, of course, is a patchwork world comprising pieces of otherwise destroyed universes.

Other possibilities include pivoting to a more street-level role alongside Daredevil and She-Hulk, confronting other Gamma mutates like Emil Blonsky’s Abomination, Harrison Ford’s Red Hulk, or Tim Blake Nelson’s Samuel Sterns, or heading to space for cosmic adventures or to learn more about his origin. Essentially, the possibilities are endless.

Of course, there’s also every chance Skaar will never appear again in the MCU. Several teases in the franchise have come to nothing, and Skaar’s brief appearance in She-Hulk may have been Marvel Studios dipping their metaphorical toe in the water to see what the fans’ reaction was. Given that it didn’t generate any notable excitement, they may leave it at that, and that would be a real shame.

It’s difficult to predict if or when Skaar will reappear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Still, we’ll know if that leaked concept art depicting him in a Hulk village reflects what’s being filmed when Avengers: Doomsday is released (it’s scheduled to hit theaters on May 1, 2026, but could be delayed until November).

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