It’s long been rumored that Avengers: Infinity War and its currently untitled sequel will bring back almost every major Marvel Studios character to date, and almost all of the major heroes have been confirmed to return. Now, we can add another important character to the list: Karen Gillan‘s Nebula from the first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies.

While speaking with BBC for her upcoming cinematic directorial debut, Tupperware Party, Gillan said “I’ll be making a little appearance in the next Avengers movies.” The way that Gillan related that suggests that Nebula would only have a cameo appearance. But if the movies take their cues from the original Infinity Gauntlet storyline, then Nebula may have a more critical role than anyone suspected.

Prior to the Infinity Gauntlet, Nebula claimed that she was the granddaughter of Thanos. Once Thanos seized the ultimate power of the Infinity Gems, he denied Nebula’s claims, captured her, and transformed her into a living corpse. That turned out to be a monumental mistake, as Nebula was the one who successfully separated Thanos from the Infinity Gauntlet on her way to becoming the final villain of the miniseries. It took the combined forces of Earth’s remaining heroes and Thanos to stop Nebula’s reign as the most powerful being in creation. That twist is not entirely out of the realm of possibility for the MCU as well.

Director James Gunn has already indicated that Nebula is on the team in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, but there’s no guarantee that she’ll stay on the Guardians’ side for the entire picture. Nebula has never been a heroine in the Marvel universe, and we don’t really expect that to change in the MCU. At the very least, Avengers: Infinity War and its sequel should give us a few scenes between Nebula, her adopted sister, Gamora, and Thanos; which should give them some closure on the big screen.

Are you excited about Gillan’s return as Nebula in the next two Avengers movies? Let us know in the comment section below!

Image: Marvel Studios