Talos (Marvel Cinematic Universe)


 *  NOTE: This article is about the incarnation of Talos from the Marvel Cinematic film series. The mainstream version can be found here: Talos the Untamed. 

"Would you like to learn what you really are?"

- Talos To Captain Marvel. "This is war. My hands are filthy from it too. But we’re here now. You found my family, and this is just the beginning.."

- Talos

Talos is a recurring character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing as a major antagonist (later anti-villain) in the 2019 Marvel film Captain Marvel and minor protagonist (while impersonating Nick Fury) in Spider-Man: Far From Home.

He is a Skrull general and the leader of a refugee Skrull faction that stood against the Kree Empire after their home world was destroyed. Talos was initally introduced as an enemy believed to be plotting to infiltrate and conquer Earth, but later became an ally of Captain Marvel after the latter found out she had been deceived by the Supreme Intelligence into wrongfully hunting the Skrull refugees.

He was portrayed by Ben Mendelsohn, who also portrayed John Daggett in Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, Danny Rayburn in Bloodline, Orson Krennic in Rogue One, Nolan Sorrento in Ready Player One, and Sheriff Of Nottingham in Robin Hood (2018).

Beginnings
Talos started out a peaceful general for the Skrulls until their homeworld planet was destroyed on the orders of the Supreme Intelligence due to the Skrulls' refusal to submit to the Kree's tyrannical rule. Ever since, Talos was forced into a violent war with the Kree while the Skrull survivors were spread across the galaxy, hiding in different planets by shape-shifting into said planet's native inhabitants. In response the Supreme Intelligence began a slandering propaganda that depicted Skrulls as evil invaders trying to conquer the galaxy, causing most other planets to turn against the Skrulls unaware that they were refugees.

However, in 1989, Talos met up with Kree defector Mar-Vell, who has created a Light-Speed Engine and a giant ship that can carry Skrull refugees so that they can find a new planet to live and be safe from the Kree.

Upon learning this, Talos gets his wife Soren and their daughter along with several more Skrulls to board the ship to avoid being tracked down by the Kree. Unfortunately, the Superior Intelligence learns of Mar-Vell's intentions and has her murdered by Yon-Rogg while the engine is destroyed by Carol Danvers, who absorbs the energy while losing her memories at the same time, prompting Yon-Rogg to take her in as his new protege. Due to Mar-Vell's death, Talos forced himself to engage in a war against the Kree in hopes of getting Carol so that he can find Mar-Vell's ship and rescue his family.

Tracking Down Vers
In 1995, Yon-Rogg and his team Starforce learned that Kree spy Soh-Larr is being held captive by Talos and his forces in the planet Torfa, so they head over to rescue him. However, they realized too late that Soh-Larr's supposed capture was all a set-up to lure Carol (now renamed Vers) into the Skrulls' clutches, with Talos, disguised as Soh-Larr, capturing her. With that in mind, Talos orders him to access Vers' memories, but this only infuriated Vers to free herself and engage in a battle, inadvertently causing Talos' ship to self-destruct. Talos and his remaining forces evacuate to Earth, where they learned that Vers is also taking refuge there. To avoid unwanted suspicion, Talos gets his fellow Skrulls to impersonate themselves as civilians. Upon learning that one of his fellow Skrulls died in a car crash following a fight against Nick Fury, Talos impersonated S.H.I.E.L.D. director Keller and ordered Fury to track Vers down while mourning for his fallen comrade.

Fury later contacted Talos believing him to be director Keller, giving away Vers' location at a S.H.I.E.L.D. base where the two were investigating Wendy Lawson. Upon arriving, Talos called Fury "Nicholas", causing fury to realize that "Keller" was a skrull since no one ever calls Fury by his first name. Talos realized that his cover was blown and attempted to kill Fury but was stopped by Vers. Fury and Vers then escaped to Louisiana to meet former pilot Maria Rambeau, the last person to see Vers and Mar-Vell alive. Meanwhile Talos found a black box detailing Mar-Vell and Vers' last conversation during the accident where Mar-Vell died.

With that information, Talos went to the Rambeau residence with his true form as a sign of a truce and played the recording for Fury and Vers, revealing them the truth about what truly happened, which made Vers regain her memories and realize that she was being used by the Superior Intelligence, as well as the fact that her name is Carol Danvers.

Fighting Against the Kree
Infuriated of being used by the Kree, Danvers defected to the Skrulls, even managing to help Talos track down Mar-Vell's ship containing the Skrulls refugees, including Talos' family. Unfortunately, Yon-Rogg and Starforce arrive dat the ship after killing Norex and contacting Ronan, and Talos was held prisoner along with his fellow Skrulls while Vers is being interrogated by the Superior Intelligence for her defection. Vers breaks free of the implant that was used to suppress her powers, allowing herself to free Fury, Maria and the Skrulls from captivity and have them evacuate back to Earth. As such, Talos helped evacuate his fellow Skrulls alongside Fury and Maria inside a ship back to Earth.

Finding a New Home
Following the defeats of Starforce and Ronan's fleets, Vers (renaming herself as Captain Marvel) agreed to help Talos and the Skrulls find a new home planet to live. He is last seen piloting Mar-Vell's ship as he and his fellow Skrulls wave to Captain Marvel as they head off in the search of a new home.

Mentoring Spider-Man
Following the deaths of Thanos and the Black Order in 2023, Talos and his wife Soren were hired to pose themselves as Fury and his assistant Maria Hill while the real Fury and Hill were going on vacation. Through their disguises, Talos and Soren learned that a group of giant beings called the Elementals have came from a alternate dimension attacking several cities and that a warrior named Mysterio has been fighting them. To that end, Talos and Sorex enlisted Spider-Man to help out Mysterio in destroying the Elementals.

However, Talos, Soren and Spider-Man learned that the Elementals are just androids and that Mysterio (who turns out to be a disgraced Stark Industries employee) created them and staged the attacks in order to cement himself as a hero to the public. Following the supposed death of Mysterio after his battle against Spider-Man, Talos and Soren reverted back to their true forms after being met by a returning Fury and Hill on a Skrull spaceship.

Trivia

 * Unlike his mainstream counterpart, this version of Talos can still shapeshift and hasn't been granted his title "the Untamed".

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Talos (Marvel Cinematic Universe)