'Captain America: Civil War' Cast Member Teases Pivotal Story Arc; What Happens To War Machine?

With “Captain America: Civil War” rapidly approaching theaters, many Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fans are already bracing themselves for the potential death of their favorite characters. With the battle being fought exclusively between heroes, one of the oldest secondary characters in the franchise is speaking out about the ripple effects the movie will have going forward.

With more superheroes showing up to the fray than the typical “Avengers” film, many fans are expecting some of Marvel’s non-essential superheroes not to survive the “Civil War.” Speaking to SuperHeroHype, Don Cheadle, who has played “War Machine” since the 2010 sequel, “Iron Man 2,” teased a major shift in the MCU’s dynamic following his character’s story arc. However, he wasn’t able to share exactly what that story arc would be.

“I never know what it’s going to be and they keep their cards very close to their breast with Marvel,” he said. “I never know where the character’s going to go, but he’s become more and more and in the next one, you’ll see that what happens to Rhodey is a little bit more intense and pivotal to what happens in the rest of the stories.”

While Marvel has plans for several movies coming between “Civil War” and the first part of its “Avengers: Infinity War” climax, the upcoming film will affect the MCU’s dynamic much in the same way that “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” did by destroying S.H.I.E.L.D.

It’s unclear exactly what Rhode’s storyline is in the film, but there’s evidence to support the theory that the famous Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) sidekick might not survive the “Civil War” brawl. Rumors of Rhodey’s death first began when the first official trailer for the film was released. Although it was dense, one of the most shocking visuals from the teaser saw Stark holding what appeared to be the lifeless body of Rhodes. The two were sporting their respective armor, but War Machine’s arc reactor chest piece had been ripped out.

In addition, it was previously reported that the film’s directors, Joe and Anthony Russo, promised body bags on the horizon when the film drops. According to ComicBook, the brothers were speaking at a Q&A event with some of the “Civil War” cast when they hinted that there will be at least one death in the movie. If Cheadle’s comments indicate what the rumors mill has been speculating about, it’s possible that “Civil War” will see the MCU’s longest-running secondary character meet his end, which would certainly act as an “intense” and “pivotal” event for the rest of the franchise. After all, how can Captain America (Chris Evans) fight alongside Iron Man in “Infinity War” if there’s the lingering elephant in the room in which the former is responsible for the death of the latter’s best buddy?

“Captain America: Civil War” hits theaters on May 6, 2016.