WARNING: This article includes SPOILERS from Thunderbolts*.Despite her abrupt death, MCU. Jake Schreier's Thunderbolts* takes a group of cynical and often overlooked MCU anti-heroes and gives them a second chance to redeem themselves. Against all odds, the Thunderbolts not only grow into a much better superhero team than anybody could have expected, but they also become the MCU's New Avengers, who rival the team-assembling efforts of Captain America himself.

Thunderbolts*' trailers and promotional material dropped clear hints to Taskmaster's death. Olga Kurylenko's Antonia Dreykov barely appeared in the Thunderbolts* trailers, and she kept her mask on in every poster and still. As theorized by many, Taskmaster dies as soon as she returns, she misses the chance to fight the Void in Thunderbolts*' final action sequence, and the team has long forgotten about her by the time they work together as the New Avengers in Thunderbolts*' post-credits scene, set fourteen months after the main events of the movie.

Taskmaster Was Almost Very Different In Black Widow

Black Widow Almost Introduced A Taskmaster Who Could Have Been Much Closer To The Comics

taskmaster's mask in Black Widow

Shortly after Thunderbolts*' release, Black Widow actor O-T Fagbenle revealed to The Direct that he originally auditioned to play a different version of Taskmaster, which he played as "a maniacal-like character" "with an African accent" in his audition. Fagbenle says he was excited about his original Black Widow role, but "that version of Taskmaster went away" and Fagbenle was offered the role of Rick Mason instead. Meanwhile, Black Widow revealed that Taskmaster's real identity is Antonia Dreykov, General Dreykov's daughter, whose mind was wiped and conditioned to make her a killing machine.

Rick Mason Could Still Become The Next Taskmaster In The MCU

Black Widow And Thunderbolts* Leave The Door Open For A Few Taskmaster Twists

Whether O-T Fagbenle's original Black Widow character would have been a fully comic-accurate Anthony Masters is still unknown, but the actor's description of the scrapped character sounds quite close to Marvel's traditional Taskmaster. In Black Widow, O-T Fagbenle plays the much less famous Rick Mason, who simply served as Natasha Romanoff's "guy in the chair." However, Fagbenle's Rick Mason is strangely similar to Tony Masters, to the point that it would be a convincing twist if Mason is eventually revealed to be the MCU's adaptation of Tony Masters.

Thunderbolts Yelena John Walker and Red Guardian Custom MCU Image
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Black Widow showcases Rick Mason's skills as a highly adaptable smuggler and an “independent contractor” with no clear allegiances. Even Thaddeus Ross scolds Mason for “selling himself to the highest bidder” and Mason creates “over twenty [fake] identities” for Natasha and himself. While he appears to be Natasha's close friend in Black Widow and a reliable asset for Nick Fury in Secret Invasion, Rick Mason could very well be a free agent who just happens to benefit from Romanoff and Fury's gigs, and "Rick Mason" could be one of many aliases Tony Masters uses for his jobs.

Why Giving The MCU Another Taskmaster Would Make Sense In The Franchise

Tony Masters' MCU Introduction Could Prevent Olga Kurylenko's Taskmaster From Being A Throwaway Character

Taskmaster wields an energy blade against a stormy backdrop.

Not surprisingly, kills off Olga Kurlyenko's Taskmaster early on, which raises the stakes for the titular anti-heroes, provides them with a few weapons, and helps them agree to work together to escape Val's vault. Unfortunately, Taskmaster's quick death also means that her MCU arc is cut short, as Antonia Dreykov had no agency in Black Widow, and her limited character arc happened entirely off-screen. If an MCU Tony Masters inherits the Taskmaster title, Dreykov could at least have some sort of legacy in the franchise, as her death would lead to the birth of a full-fledged MCU anti-hero or villain.

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There are many ways the MCU could on the Taskmaster torch to O-T Fagbenle's Rick Mason. Mason's suspicious "independent contractor" background and his role in the Red Room's dismantling in Black Widow could be reinterpreted as hints that Mason was secretly seeking to gain Taskmaster's skills, which could be quite helpful for a jack-of-all-trades like him. In this case, Taskmaster's return could pull off a second identity twist when it's revealed that the new person under the skull mask is a "maniacal" and more comic-accurate Anthony Masters.

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