You can put your remote down and get your finger off that pause button. While it seemed like there was a new Easter egg waiting to be found in Avengers: Endgame, it's fake news. The Russo Brothers confirmed earlier today that Nova makes his MCU introduction in the blockbuster sequel. Though, they didn't fully divulged where he could be found. So fans went on the hunt. Now, the directors admit that they were just having some fun with fans, which isn't making a few folks very happy.

"That was actually a joke on our part."

In a new video for Wired Magazine where the brothers break down various fan questions, they seemingly confirmed that Nova is introduced in the big climactic end battle sequence where the dusted heroes return from the Snap. As the portals open, Nova was said to emerge from one of them, to help in the fight against Thanos. Just like Howard the Duck, who was actually spotted during the movie's initial theatrical run.

Nova's introduction in Avengers: Endgame would have been one of the movie's best kept secrets leading up to right now. There have been plenty of Easter eggs unpacked and discovered thus far, with the Phase 3 ending sequel hitting Blu-ray and DVD last week. The end of the movie is packed with all kinds of interesting reveals, as seemingly every hero from the galaxy is recruited into the fight. So this Easter egg made total sense. Though it was all just a big joke.

Richard Rider would have been making his first ever big screen appearance in Avengers: Endgame, even if he was incredibly hard to spot. You would have needed an extremely big TV screen to find him anyway, so perhaps its best they didn't actually include the character. Joe Russo jokingly said this about the Easter egg in question.

Fans have long clamored for the introduction of Richard Rider in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As it turns out, he showed up as Nova to fight Thanos with the rest of the heroes. Look closely at that scene again and you will see. You will see Richard Rider in the background of the shot. Easter egg."

So, straight from the director's mouth, Nova's appearance in Avengers: Endgame appeared to be real news. And the inclusion made perfect sense considering the lead up to this final battle between Marvel's greatest and the Mad Titan. Thanos obliterated Xander off-screen leading up to Avengers: Infinity War. There, he obtained the Power Stone, which was hidden away by the Guardians of the Galaxy in their first standalone outing.

In the Marvel comics, Richard Rider has inherited the power of the Xandarian Worldmind. He becomes Nova when Xandar's lone survivor is combined with Nova Corps. As we know from the time jump at the beginning of Endgame, half a decade has passed since Xandar was destroyed. So that definitely gives Richard Rider enough time to hone his superpowers, depending on whether or not he survived the Snap, and it sounds like he did. He just didn't come into the battle until he was called, much like Captain Marvel, who also survived the Snap.

Since the fake reveal, there was speculation that Nova could get his own prequel, much like Marvel is doing right now with the Black Widow movie. It's possible that a spin-off could show what happens in this five-year span, where half of the universe goes missing. It's also ripe for a Disney+ series.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige made it clear while speaking at Comic-Con in 2018 that Nova was definitely on the big board of potential heroes that the studio would love to incorporate into the ongoing interconnected saga. Many fans thought he'd show up in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which didn't happen. But perhaps he'll fly in when the delayed Vol. 3 finally hits theaters as part of Marvel Phase 5. Feige said this.

"Because of the connection to the Guardians universe, because there are more than one examples to pull from in the comics that are interesting. And you're absolutely right, he was in the earliest drafts of the [Guardians of the Galaxy]."

As of this moment, we'll have to wait until a later date to see Nova in an MCU movie. You can watch the Russo's talk more about the movie as they answer some fan questions for Wired. And it was ComicBook.com that got the Russos to admit this was just a big troll on their part.