‘Secret Invasion’: Is President Ritson a Skrull?

The first MCU TV series in Phase 5 is slowly but surely captivating us on Disney+. Secret Invasion has introduced us to many old characters and many new ones – but we absolutely have no idea who is really themselves and who is a Skrull. The first big reveal was that Everett Ross was a Skrull, but now, even President Ritson is suspicious. So, is he a Skrull, too?

President Ritson might be a Skrull, but we don’t have a definitive answer yet. However, we do know that by the time Captain America: Brave New World takes place, President Ritson will already be replaced. Whether that’s due to him being a Skrull, stepping down, or not being reelected remains to be seen.

That being said, there are some pointers already in the show that the Skrulls have infiltrated the Oval Office already. Perhaps President Ritson isn’t a Skrull right now, but the invasive alien rebels, headed by their leader Gravik, might have plans to make the POTUS a Skrull, which would grant them insane power. Here’s how that may happen.

Who is President Ritson in the MCU?

President Ritson is a new character in the MCU, officially introduced in the ‘Secret Invasion‘ TV series as the new President of the United States in the MCU. He is portrayed by the famous actor Dermot Mulroney, known for numerous roles such as in ‘Todiac,’ ‘Shameless,’ ‘Young Guns,’ etc.

Although Ritson was officially introduced in ‘Secret Invasion,’ he was mentioned previously; first, in ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,’ where he asked the State Secretary to consult with the CIA about the Wakandans, and then in a news report in ‘Thor: Love and Thunder,’ where it was mentioned that President Ritson entered a new trade agreement with New Asgard.

That means President Ritson has been around for a while but didn’t rise to a more prominent role until now. That makes sense, though, with all the drama with the Multiverse collapsing. His role may change, however, quite soon, as it seems that everything is pointing to a more prominent role for the POTUS, one way or another.

Interestingly, we’ve already had a POTUS in the MCU before Ritson. Iron Man fans will remember President Matthew Ellis, who, as it seems, was the President for quite a while in the MCU, possibly even longer than the two mandates regularly delivered by US Presidents.

Is President Ritson a Skrull?

Before we dive deeper into the theories, I want to highlight that, when writing this article, nothing about President Ritson has been officially confirmed. We don’t really know if he’s a Skrull or if he’ll be replaced by a Skrull somewhere along the line. However, some clues may point to the Skrulls already having infiltrated the Oval Office.

The biggest clue, believe it or not, is James Rhodes, portrayed by Don Cheadle – our beloved War Machine. He now works as the official advisor and consultant of the POTUS, basically being his right-hand man. Well, everything points to Rhodey being a Skrull himself.

First, his conversation with Nick Fury, where Fury asked him for help, was quite odd. Not only did Rhodes refuse, but he also fired Fury. Secondly, the first thing he suggested after Fury told him about the Skrull invasion was for Fury to ‘call the Avengers.’ 

Wouldn’t he be able to do so himself? But, also, is that even a good idea? Bring in the Avengers so that the Skrulls could take their places and wreak absolute havoc? It could have catastrophic consequences, and you’d think that our Rhodey would think it through before such a blatant suggestion.

But, finally, the last clue – the one that might be the most important – is that Rhodes called Fury ‘Nick’ at the end of his speech. If you remember, in ‘Captain Marvel,’ Fury adamantly stated that nobody – and I mean, nobody – calls him Nick, nor Nicholas, nor Joseph. Even his mother calls him Fury; if he ever has children, they’d call him Fury.

By now, I’m pretty sure that Rhodes is already a Skrull, meaning he was replaced somewhere between the resolution of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ and becoming the President’s consultant.

That leads us to President Ritson himself. Is he a Skrull as well?

I highly doubt that he is, at least not at this point. I believe that Gravik’s plan is to infiltrate the Oval Office – which they already did with Rhodey – and then find the right opportunity to take Ritson and replace him with a Skrull as well.

Imagine what kind of power the Skrull rebellion would have if they had a guy posing as the POTUS? It would be pretty wild.

We already have some information about President Ritson’s future, but take it with a grain of salt, as we still don’t know how ‘Secret Invasion’ will play out. On that note, let’s speculate and make educated guesses.

Will President Ritson survive the Secret Invasion?

While speaking to Entertainment Weekly back in February, Marvel’s Kevin Feige revealed that Harrison Ford’s Thunderbolt Ross would become President Ross – MCU’s next POTUS – in ‘Captain America: Brave New World.’ 

Meaning, by this time next year, President Ritson will already be replaced. It seems like a short tenure, right? So, will Ritson, perhaps, die in the ‘Secret Invasion’?

The way I see it, there are three possibilities on why President Ritson won’t be the President anymore by the time the new ‘Captain America’ takes place.

One, he is – or will become – a Skrull in ‘Secret Invasion’ and will eventually get killed or captured.

Two, he isn’t a Skrull but will die in the ensuing, inevitable battle that’s coming against the Skrulls. We’ve already seen that they’re capable of massive terrorist attacks – who’s to say they can’t assassinate the US President – especially if they already have a man on the inside?

And three, President Ritson won’t make the right moves when needed during the ‘Secret Invasion’ and simply won’t get re-elected when the time comes, so President Ross takes over instead.

Honestly, I hope it will turn out to be option number two, but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see how ‘Secret Invasion’ plays out. The next episode drops on Wednesday, July 5, 2023, and every following Wednesday until the season finale drops on July 26, 2023, exclusively on Disney+.

What do you think? Is Ritson a Skrull at this point? Let us know in the comments below!