Marvel Television officially announced a new series titled “Zodiac” on Thursday. Apparently, conservative politician and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is among the show’s earliest fans.
“Can’t wait to watch it,” Cruz’s official account commented on X.
The post alludes to a long-running meme and ironic conspiracy theory that Cruz himself is the Zodiac Killer, the infamous serial murderer who evaded capture in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1960s. It’s unclear exactly why the meme, which is not meant as serious speculation, originated or caught on, though it seemingly began with a 2013 tweet posted during Cruz’s speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
“#CPAC Alert: Ted Cruz is speaking!! His speech is titled: ‘This Is The Zodiac Speaking,’” the initial Tweet from @RedPillAmerica reads.
“It’s all about a feeling they have about Cruz: they think he’s creepy,” NPR said of proponents of the meme in a 2016 breakdown article written during Cruz’s presidential run. “And they want to point that out, as clearly as they can.”
Of course, Marvel’s “Zodiac” isn’t a show about the Zodiac Killer (at least, it probably isn’t). The show has been described as a live-action spy thriller set in the MCU, with a logo that evokes elements of the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo and the classic zodiac wheel.
While this is just speculation, these clues point toward Jonathan Hickman’s comic “Secret Warriors,” which he wrote before taking on “Fantastic Four,” “Avengers” and “New Avengers,” ultimately culminating in the crossover event “Secret Wars,” co-written with Esad Ribić (the saga provides the inspiration for the next two “Avengers” films). “Secret Warriors” sees Nick Fury unite a group of powered individuals to take on threats around the world, including HYDRA. The comic also uses Zodiac imagery for a “great wheel” of 12 individuals who form a clandestine inner circle, including Nick Fury, Jake Fury, Dum Dum Dugan and Leonardo da Vinci (really).
Marvel Television will release “Zodiac” in 2028.
