You Can Stop Freaking Out About Probably Fake WINTER SOLDIER Spoilers

People started freaking out yesterday that a major Captain America: The Winter Soldier spoiler had hit the web. The evidence: a soundtrack listing and a picture of a toy. I think this is all bullshit, and I'll tell you why.

First know that I am about to repeat the supposed spoiler, so if you're allergic to even probably phony spoilers, turn back.

The gist of the spoiler is that Robert Redford's character is actually the Red Skull in disguise. When your face is a skull you do have a lot of options for masks and stuff, so that's been a theory circulating since Redford himself was hired. The usual fan speculation, where nerds get together on message boards to try and write upcoming movies in their heads. 

What's the supposed evidence? First is this picture, taken at ToyFair, of a Red Skull action figure: 

It's really worth noting that toys are the single least reliable indicator of stuff from movies. There was a Winter Soldier action figure included in the Captain America: The First Avenger toyline, for instance. Toy manufacturers will use any excuse to make variations on characters, even if they aren't in the movie currently being promoted. The fact that this Red Skull is dressed exactly like he was in the first film is a huge red flag for me. Even without that, I wouldn't take this to mean much simply because I have decades of experience of seeing movie tie-in toys that have no bearing on the actual movie. 

The second piece of 'evidence' is the flimsiest thing ever, and I can't believe people are reporting this. It's a report that the Winter Soldier soundtrack includes a track called Alexander Pierce is The Red Skull. It is THREE SECONDS LONG, and other track listings from this leaked soundtrack include Assignment Miami Beach, Mission to Moscow and Back In Training.

Yes, Police Academy movie titles. 

Also, this leak was on the bullshit comicbookmovie.com, a site that allows anyone to post articles claiming any information without vetting or editing. The only existing record of this - since that page has been deleted - is an archive of a 4chan thread. 

So if you're worried you've been spoiled on Captain America: The Winter Soldier, relax. It's all certainly fake. And if you're a website that ran this stuff as a legit rumor or spoiler, try and do better next time. This shit is lame.