Gideon Malick

"You don't know my name, but I think you've been trying to get my attention." "I've been wondering when I'd hear from you. You're the one all the others were afraid of, before me." "Not everyone fears you."

- Gideon Malick and Grant Ward

Gideon Malick is one of the heads of HYDRA. Originally one of HYDRA's infiltrators in the World Security Council, he broke ties with that organization after it became defunct, becoming an advisor of President Matthew Ellis. From there he orchestrated the formation of the Advanced Threat Containment Unit and manipulated the agency into collecting the newly transformed Inhumans to build an army for HYDRA's ancient leader to command. In the aftermath of Baron Wolfgang von Strucker's defeat, Malick joined forces with Grant Ward so they could destroy S.H.I.E.L.D. and finish Project Distant Star Return to accomplish HYDRA's oldest goal.

World Security Council
"This is out of line, Director. You’re dealing with forces you can’t control." "You ever been in a war, Councilman? In a firefight? Did you feel an over abundance of control?"

- Gideon Malick and Nick Fury

Gideon Malick was an industrialist and a member of the World Security Council, the advisory body who supervised S.H.I.E.L.D. and Director Nick Fury in times of world threatening crisis. However, he was also secretly one of the heads of HYDRA, the terrorist organization thought to be disbanded at the end of World War II.

Project Distant Star Return
"Every generation has sent men through the portal, hoping to save or at least serve our leader on the other side."

- Gideon Malick to Grant Ward

In 2001, Malick launched Project Distant Star Return, the modern-day continuation of HYDRA's thousands of years old efforts to use the Monolith to bring HYDRA's ancient Inhuman leader from his exile on Maveth back to Earth so he could conquer it. Using his connections, he orchestrated the passage of the Monolith to NASA, with the hope that their technicians could send people on the other side.

While his company was consulting on a program at NASA, he met Rosalind Price, a high ranking spy whose trust he gained, advising her on many key missions. Since the budgets for space exploration had vanished, Malick and his men convinced everyone at NASA the Monolith was the affordable future of space exploration. Soon, a four men team led by Will Daniels was sent through the portal, never to return.

War for Earth
"You let him take it and the war criminal, Loki, who should be answering for his crime." "Oh, I think he will be."

- Gideon Malick and Nick Fury

In 2012, the Earth was attacked by a visitor from another planet. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s director Nick Fury informed the World Security Council of an attack from the Asgardian Prince Loki which had resulted in the destruction of Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S., the loss of the Tesseract, and Agent Hawkeye becoming a mind-controlled slave to Loki. Fury informed them that although Loki's brother Thor was believed to not be hostile, they needed to bring together the Avengers to counter the attack, although Malick and Hawley expressed their reservations on the idea as they viewed the Avengers as a team of super-powered freaks, noting that they should move forward with Phase 2. During the Battle of New York, Malick, along with the other council members, ordered Fury to drop a nuclear bomb on New York City to contain the Chitauri invasion. Fury argued against the command as he refused to bomb a civilian population while the Avengers continued to try to control the situation. Malick and the other members of the Council ordered the missile to be fired regardless, but Fury went so far as firing upon one of his jets on the Helicarrier. The command was followed by another pilot who deployed the missile; it was ultimately stopped by Iron Man. The battle was eventually won by the Avengers and Loki was taken into custody; Malick listened as Fury explained that Thor was taking Loki and the Tesseract back to Asgard to keep it from their reach. When Malick noted that that was not a decision he should have made, Fury assured him he had not made it, just had not argued when the God of Thunder did. Despite Malick's reservations, Fury informed them that he was no longer tracking the location of the Avengers as he had allowed them to disperse due to a promise he had made.

HYDRA Uprising
"You're one of the last heads of HYDRA's old guard." "Thanks in no small part to you."

- Gideon Malick and Grant Ward

Following the dissolution of the World Security Council during the HYDRA Uprising, Malick rejoined HYDRA's ranks, eventually becoming the only modern HYDRA leader that all other heads feared. He dealt with Wolfgang von Strucker, Alexander Pierce and John Garrett, moles within S.H.I.E.L.D.. He hoped they would stand beside him when the time was right, but they proved too narcissistic for his vision. Despite the fall of most of HYDRA's cells during the War on HYDRA and the abrupt end of many of HYDRA's operations, Malick remained in his public position undetected, still incredibly powerful. As an advisor of President Matthew Ellis, he could continue working on HYDRA's projects undisturbed by the authorities.

Raising the Inhuman Army
"Now we're building an army for It to command when It returns, and you and I will rule beside It."

- Gideon Malick to Grant Ward

Advising the president's staff, Malick manipulated the US Government to create the Advanced Threat Containment Unit, an agency that would replace S.H.I.E.L.D. and collect and study the newly transformed Inhumans. Officially, the ATCU would contain the Inhumans and look out for the cure for their condition. In reality, Malick's moles inside the ATCU would secretly give the fish oil pills contaminated by the impure Terrigen Crystals to all of the ATCU's employees to create as many Inhumans as they could.

Their targets were also all public witnesses of transformations. The new Inhumans were then conscripted into HYDRA. Malick's aim was to create an Inhuman Army for HYDRA's first leader to command when Project Distant Star Return is finished and he returns from his exile on Maveth. As an overseer of the ATCU's science division, Malick had considerable influence on the agency's director, Rosalind Price, and shared with her the info on Project T.A.H.I.T.I.

Problems with Grant Ward
"You don't know this guy Ward, he's scary." "I'm aware of Grant Ward, he was once an untested youth too, everyone has a history."

- Werner von Strucker and Gideon Malick

Six months after the fall of Baron Wolfgang von Strucker's HYDRA cell and the Baron's subsequent death at the hands of Ultron, Malick was contacted by Strucker's son Werner, who had recently been recruited into Grant Ward's HYDRA cell. Strucker informed Malick that Ward intended to kill him for failing to complete an assassination mission and begged for Malick's help. Malick explained that he and Baron Strucker would have never allowed an untrained agent to be sent on such a major mission and vowed to take care of the situation. To make the situation clear, Malick contacted Grant Ward and offered him redemption for his mistakes, such as making von Strucker a pawn on the chessboard before schedule, leading to Strucker now being a worthless player in the game. Ward arrogantly replied that he did not need redemption but Malick insisted that he did before offering to hand over von Strucker's location to him. When Ward questioned why he would do this, Malick told him that he had chosen a side in the rebirth of HYDRA.

Meeting Grant Ward
"I gave you what you asked for. I'm just not sure you're asking for the right things. Revenge only provides a temporary pleasure." "But a pleasure nonetheless." "You should think on a grander scale."

- Gideon Malick and Grant Ward

Malick arranged to meet with President Matthew Ellis at NORAD to discuss the future of the Inhumans. He ordered Rosalind Price to bring Phil Coulson there so he could meet him. This arrangement failed when Coulson chose to stop Lash. Instead, Malick met with Grant Ward to discuss Werner von Strucker, who had survived the assassination attempt and had fallen into a coma. Malick asked if Ward only wanted revenge, but Ward insisted that his end goal was to kill Coulson and destroy S.H.I.E.L.D. Malick received a call from Price, who apologized for failing to bring Coulson to him. Malick had a dinner of octopus served up for the pair of them and explained why the Octopus was HYDRA's symbol, describing it as smart and the ultimate killer. Malick continued to press Ward for a request and they discussed how HYDRA's leadership had been destroyed due in part of Ward, Malick made it clear that he knew Ward was looking for Baron Wolfgang von Strucker's secret vault, which was said to contain HYDRA's greatest weapon, but Malick insisted did not exist, however Ward argued that Malick had killed Werner to become sole owner of it. Ward suggested that they use the weapon inside it to good use for HYDRA. Having decided that Ward was more of a threat to HYDRA's overall plans than he was a benefit, Malick arranged to be called away from the meeting by Giyera and explained that he felt that Ward's plan of revenge against S.H.I.E.L.D. was not something he wanted to get involved with, as he claimed he had bigger plans needing his focus. Ward insisted that he would find Wolfgang von Strucker's vault with or without Malick's help, but Malick informed him that although he was a fine predator, he was not top of the food chain as he left, ordering a team of assassins to murder Ward.

Meeting Andrew Garner
"It strikes me that no one's asked if you even want treatment. They haven't even asked your opinion on the subject at all, have they?" "No. But then, all they see is a killer."

- Gideon Malick and Andrew Garner

Malick went to see Andrew Garner, who was being kept in a Containment Module to keep him from transforming into his Inhuman form. Malick claimed to be working with Matthew Ellis and S.H.I.E.L.D. to help find a cure for Garner but Malick questioned if Garner really wanted to be cured. They discussed how S.H.I.E.L.D. had not helped him during the Inhuman Outbreak and Malick promised to help Garner in exchange for S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets.

Explaining HYDRA's History
"Do you know much about our history, our origin?" "Yeah, World War II, Red Skull used Nazi funding to build his whole empire." "No, no, Red Skull was following the principle that HYDRA was built upon."

- Gideon Malick and Grant Ward

Malick traveled to Zepkow, Germany to find Wolfgang von Strucker's secret vault. Within minutes, Grant Ward also arrived. Malick explained that he was very impressed by Ward, and was rarely impressed; he even suggested that he should make Ward the second head of HYDRA next to him. However, Ward told him he wanted to kill him, leading to Malick promising to tell him the true history of HYDRA and offered him a drink. Ward told Malick he was aware that HYDRA was founded during World War II by Red Skull using Nazi funding, but Malick explained that their history was far older than that. He opened Strucker's safe and pulled out a piece of the Monolith, explaining that the stones had been passed down for hundreds of generations and had the power to teleport users to another world. He explained how an Inhuman was born thousands of years ago, so powerful he was banished from Earth, and HYDRA aimed to bring him back and they were using the ATCU to build It an army. Malick vowed to help Ward destroy S.H.I.E.L.D. in exchange for learning how they brought Jemma Simmons back from the Monolith planet.

Final Steps
"We're never going to help you open another bloody portal." "Nobodies asking you to, see HYDRA's been opening one portal or another for centuries and all it takes is a few stones and a building with just the right vibrational frequency."

- Leo Fitz and Gideon Malick

Once Malick discovered that Rosalind Price had discovered his connection to HYDRA, he sent Grant Ward to assassinate her. When Ward returned Malick complimented him on the successful mission but berated him about nearly killing Phil Coulson in the process, with Malick noting that he had put too much into his mission to have Ward ruin in by focusing on closure. Malick showed Ward the final pieces of the Monolith and told him that they were close to completing HYDRA's oldest mission and Ward assured him everything would go according to plan.

Giyera successfully kidnapped Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons, bringing them to Malick, who asked Simmons if she had seen It while she was trapped on Maveth. Although Fitz insisted that they would not help him, Malick explained that HYDRA was fully aware of how to open a portal but Simmons quickly realized that they did not know how to get back again. Asking Ward for suggestions, Malick was recommended to separate the pair so they could each listen to the other being tortured alone.

Opening the Portal
"I'm not asking you to follow, I'm asking you to lead. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time, but I had hoped that I'd find someone to sieve it with me. I thought it might be Pierce but he was bloodthirsty, it might be John Garrett but his vanity led him to think of nothing but himself."

- Gideon Malick

While at the HYDRA Castle in England, Malick oversaw the placement of the Monolith pieces until Giyera arrived with Jemma Simmons who insisted that the being on Maveth would kill everyone, however Malick claimed that it wanted to return to Earth. Although Simmons continued to insist she would not help them, Malick revealed that they had convinced Leo Fitz to go instead in exchange for her safety.

Malick spoke to Grant Ward as he prepared for a battle with S.H.I.E.L.D., while Malick claimed that Phil Coulson was not important he revealed that he still needed Ward to led his men into Maveth. When Ward resisted, Malick insulted him, claiming he did not have vision. Malick explained he'd tried to find a suitable partner for years, testing Alexander Pierce and John Garrett but he had his faith in Ward himself. He told him to go to the other side and look It in the eye so they could work with it to control the world.

The speech work and Ward agreed to travel to Maveth. Malick watched with Giyera as the portal was opened and the soldiers jumped through it. Malick took time to speak to Ward, telling him to find It and return to the same spot within twelve hours, shaking his hand and telling him to finish HYDRA's ultimate mission. As Ward and Fitz disappeared through the portal, Malick ordered his scientists to turn off the vibrations, however just as he did this, he witnessed Phil Coulson jump from a Quinjet and travel through the portal just before it closed.

Personality
Like most of HYDRA's leaders, Gideon Malick was a cruel, cold hearted pragmatist. Despite his friendship with the fellow HYDRA head Baron Wolfgang von Strucker, he didn't hesitate to betray Strucker's son Werner to Grant Ward to please Ward and organize a meeting with him. For Malick, Werner, as an untrained operative who failed in his first mission, was a damaged good that couldn't be left to run around knowing HYDRA's secrets, and therefore had to be killed. At the same time, he would kill two birds with one stone because Werner's death would leave him the only one with the access to Wolfgang's secret vaults. Malick also intended to have Ward killed, because his campaign to remake HYDRA posed a threat to everything he built through Project Distant Star Return. However, he accepted Ward as HYDRA's second head when Ward proved himself in his eyes.

Family

 * Father

Allies

 * HYDRA
 * Wolfgang von Strucker †
 * Alexander Pierce †
 * John Garrett †
 * Werner von Strucker
 * Grant Ward - Rival turned 2nd in command
 * Kebo †
 * Advanced Threat Containment Unit
 * Giyera
 * Matthew Ellis

Enemies

 * Rosalind Price † - Former Ally turned Enemy
 * S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * Nick Fury - Former Subordinate turned Enemy
 * Maria Hill - Former Subordinate turned Enemy
 * Leo Fitz
 * Jemma Simmons
 * World Security Council
 * Hawley - Former Fellow Councilor
 * Loki
 * Chitauri
 * Andrew Garner - Prisoner

Appearances
In chronological order:
 * The Avengers
 * Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
 * Season Three
 * Among Us Hide...
 * Chaos Theory
 * Many Heads, One Tale
 * Closure
 * Maveth

Behind the Scenes

 * This character was unnamed in The Avengers; he was given the name Gideon Malick for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. When Powers Boothe's appearance in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was announced, his character was presented as "a notorious man whose current loyalties remain a mystery". Jeph Loeb said about him: "Gideon is incredibly menacing and in him we have a character that even the stone-cold Grant Ward would fear."