The following includes spoilers for episode five of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Going into its Phase 4, the MCU has been and will be introducing scores of new characters from the Marvel comics. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier has, in only five episodes so far, already introduced several characters and suggested the existence of others.
Some of these characters are well-known enough that audiences don't have to be very familiar with Marvel comics in order to recognize them and what they represent. However, others may be a bit trickier for the average audience member to catch. This applies especially when a character only makes a brief appearance or cameo, and their name, costume, or action is meant to spark familiarity in the viewer without much context.
One such brief appearance occurred in episode five, "Truth," of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus made her debut appearance in the MCU as Contessa Valentina Allegra De Fontaine. While this name may not be familiar to all fans, this character has a long history in Marvel comics and could hint at many interesting things to come.
In The Episode
Valentina appears to John Walker outside his court hearing, where he was stripped of the title of Captain America after he publicly killed a Flag-Smasher with the shield after Lemar was killed. Valentina, looking sleek and businesslike in all black, introduces herself before sitting herself down between John and his wife Olivia, who are very confused. "Look, I would have killed the b****** too," Valentina says, immediately positioning herself as on John's side, "Nobody in there is mad at you about that. I mean you would have been doing them a favor if you'd taken out the whole lot. But these guys in suits, you know, they've got a whole thing to protect."
Valentina tells him she knows he took the serum, and that it has made him very valuable to certain people. She thinks it was his second-best choice he's ever made that he took it and that his first best would be picking up the phone when Valentina calls him in the future. "Oh, by the way, don't worry about the shield. I know you don't have it," Valentina continues, with no hint as to how she knows this, "Here's a dirty little state secret. It doesn't really belong to the government. It's kind of a legal grey area." She leaves, saying she will be in touch. John and Olivia are left confused, staring at the business card Valentina left that has no words on it, just one black side and one white side.
So Who Is She In The Comics?
Contessa Valentina Allegra De Fontaine has a long history in Marvel comics, making her first appearance in the 1960s. She began as a SHIELD agent, skilled enough to move high up in the ranks. She becomes lovers with Nick Fury later on, and also has a brief flirtation with Captain America. At one point, Valentina leads Femme Force along with Sharon Carter, an all-female assault team of SHIELD agents. Valentina was reassigned as SHIELD's liaison to the UK after Nick Fury went underground.
Later in the comics, Valentina takes up with HYDRA, and is revealed to have been a Russian sleeper agent during the duration of her time at SHIELD. She takes on the title of Madame Hydra, a title given to top female operatives at HYDRA. She takes over the title from Ophelia Sarkissian--also known as Viper. Ophelia's Madame Hydra has been seen onscreen before, appearing as a major antagonist on Marvel's Agents of Shield before being destroyed. In the comics, sometime after taking on the identity of Madame Hydra, Valentina betrays HYDRA, revealed to be working with shadowy terrorist organization Leviathan.
Role in the MCU?
With such a brief appearance, it's unclear what exactly Valentina's role will be in the MCU, but there are several possibilities. It's possible she works for the Power Broker, especially if the villain is playing a bigger role in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier series or in the MCU as a whole. She could be an indicator, as Madame Hydra, that HYDRA will be returning to the MCU as a major antagonist. If this version of Valentina has already betrayed HYDRA for Leviathan, it's possible that the organization could be active and interested in John Walker. Leviathan has already played a major part in the TV show Agent Carter, so its existence has already been established in the Marvel universe.
Another theory that has been tossed around is that Valentina will be involved with setting up the Thunderbolts. Later in episode five, the Dora Milaje arrest Baron Zemo and say they are taking him to the Raft, where he will live out the rest of his days. The Raft is a maximum-security prison where, in the comics, Zemo puts together a team of supervillains to take down SHIELD and the Avengers. They later leave him to become the Thunderbolts, a team of reformed criminals. Later still, HYDRA is revealed to secretly be the team's financial backer, which is how Valentina could come in. While John Walker was not part of this team in the comics, he could be part of this iteration. If Valentina appears in Black Widow, as some sources claim, she could be recruiting Yelena Belova, who is part of this team in some continuities.
Whatever her role may turn out to be, it's exciting to see another character with such a long Marvel legacy join the MCU. Especially when that character is played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, a very talented and well-loved actress. Audiences will have to wait to see what role the Contessa will play in projects to come.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is now streaming on Disney Plus.