Daniel Whitehall

## Character

"*Freedom. Equality. Individual rights. These principles make mankind a plague on this planet. Think of a forest. It dries up and catches fire with the first spark. Now, mankind would fight that fire, believing every individual plant perfect in its own individual way. But it's the fire that's perfect.*"
—Daniel Whitehall[src]

**Werner Reinhardt**, later known as **Daniel Whitehall**, was a character on Marvel's *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*. He first appears in the first episode of the second season of *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*. He is portrayed by guest star Reed Diamond.

## Biography

### Youth and Early Career

Werner Reinhardt was born in Arnsberg, Germany on October 9th, 1904. Following the end of World War I, Reinhardt joined the Nazis and became an officer of the Schutzstaffel. He rose through the ranks until he became an Obergruppenführer (Lieutenant general), eventually joining HYDRA, the special science division led by Johann Schmidt.

### World War II

#### The Obelisk

When World War II broke out, Reinhardt actively participated in German conquest of Europe, earning several high military decorations, including the Panzer Badge, the Close Combat Clasp, and the Iron Cross First Class. As an officer of HYDRA, he was sent to search for mysterious artifacts. On one occasion, his team discovered the corpse of a blue-skinned humanoid organism. Somehow, during this time, Reinhardt learned about Johann Schmidt's disfigurement that earned him the nickname "Red Skull".

Among the various myths HYDRA researched, to Reinhardt the most intriguing one was the story about an Obelisk-like object with the power to turn living creatures into stone. Reinhardt became especially obsessed with the Obelisk, and came to learn of the myth behind it, an old story from the East about the "stars that fell from the heavens". Being an intelligent man, Reinhard realized the "stars" were actually extraterrestrials who came to Earth thousands of years earlier; Reinhardt was led to believe that the aliens intended to conquer Earth, but failed.

#### Monstrous Experiments

By March 1945, Reinhardt was the commanding officer of a HYDRA Fortress in Austria. He personally discovered a mysterious item which would become known as the Obelisk in Chaves, Portugal. Reinhardt soon learnt that the Obelisk had the power to kill anyone who came into contact with it; in order to learn more, Reinhardt ordered his team to capture a group of people from China who knew about the Obelisk. When he showed the object to his leader, Johann Schmidt also known as the Red Skull, Schmidt said that the Obelisk may hold the answer to death itself.

Reinhardt continually tested the Obelisk's power on various prisoners in order to find the reason behind the lethal effects, and why the effects differed from person to person. Eventually, one of his subjects was able to touch the Obelisk without dying, and instead triggered an unusual response whereas the Obelisk radiated a bright light. Before Reinhardt could study the woman, word of Schmidt's apparent demise at the hands of Captain America became known, and he ordered his men to lock the woman in a cage and evacuate the fortress.

#### Defeat

Afraid the Allies would find and capture him now that HYDRA's strength had been weakened, Reinhardt and his men moved to a more secure location, a HYDRA Research Facility in Austria. The facility housed dozens of artifacts collected by HYDRA over the years, many of them held in boxes marked with the logo of the Deutsches Afrikakorps.

However, the Allied advance into Austria was faster than Reinhardt predicted, and he made a plan to escape with the artifacts from the facility and continue HYDRA's work. Before they could escape, the facility was attacked by a Strategic Scientific Reserve team led by Peggy Carter, Jim Morita, and Dum Dum Dugan. Reinhardt and all of his men were captured and all their experiments were locked away, including the Obelisk. Before he was taken away, Reinhardt warned Agent Carter that if one of HYDRA's heads was cut off, two more would grow in its place, although Carter assured him that the SSR would continue cutting off the heads regardless.

### Prisoner 63635

After his capture, Reinhardt was taken to a secret S.S.R. facility. While imprisoned, Peggy Carter came to interrogate him. As many former Nazi scientists were already recruited by the US Government, Reinhardt expressed the wish to be recruited as well, as he considered himself far more valuable than those who would make parlor tricks by sending rockets into space.

Agent Carter then mentioned his many war crimes, but he offered to help her understand the items the S.S.R. has confiscated from his last commanding post. He told her about the myth concerning "blue angels" and revealed the extraterrestrial origin of the artifacts. While visibly interested in this revelation, Carter's disgust towards Reinhardt's actions proved stronger and she opted to let the man rot in prison for the rest of his days as punishment for his uncountable crimes against humanity. Sentenced to life imprisonment, Reinhardt spent the next forty-four years in a small cell in a S.H.I.E.L.D. prison called the Rat.

#### Years in Prison

In 1989, now an old man, Reinhardt was visited by two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, who told him that he was free because Undersecretary Alexander Pierce gave him a medical parole, citing that Reinhardt had joined the SS and HYDRA under duress - though in fact Pierce was a member of HYDRA. As one agent left the cell, the other whispered "Hail HYDRA". When Reinhardt replied with the same salute and asked why he was needed after so many years, the agent said that he would have to see himself.

#### New Experiments

Reinhardt was quickly returned to his old HYDRA fortress in Austria, where the HYDRA Agents presented him with a captured Jiaying. Reinhardt was both shocked and elated to discover that Jiaying was still alive and retaining her youth even after so many years while he had become an old man. Fascinated, he said that he would find out what made her so special by experimenting on her.

Having her tied down onto a table, he operated on the woman in an attempt to find the truth behind her immunity to the Obelisk as well as her youthful appearance, cutting her open and removing her organs to be studied, yet finding little results as to the reasons behind her gifts. To ensure that he got the best results from the experiment, Reinhardt kept her alive for as long as possible. Eventually, Jiaying died during the many days of torturous operations; however, Reinhardt harvested her organs and kept them in jars for study and further experimentation.

Reinhardt was able to use Jiaying's DNA to physically regress himself back to his middle-age; when Hauer asked what Reinhardt had taken from her, he informed him that he had taken everything that he possibly could. He ordered his men to take her mutilated corpse and dump it outside. Reinhardt then officially rejoined the ranks of the new modern day HYDRA, and by the next year he had taken up the identity of Doctor Daniel Whitehall, becoming one of HYDRA's most prominent figureheads in the new modern world.

### HYDRA Uprising

In 2014, after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D., Whitehall had become the leader of the HYDRA forces in America, was a regular attendee at the biannual meetings of the terrorist organization, and had resumed his search for the Obelisk. He had his second in command, Sunil Bakshi, hire Carl Creel to reclaim the Obelisk from the United States Armed Forces. At first, Creel's mission was successful, but the Obelisk was stolen from Bakshi and Creel was captured by S.H.I.E.L.D. and turned over to General Glenn Talbot.

#### The New S.H.I.E.L.D. Strikes

HYDRA managed to capture former S.H.I.E.L.D. operative Agent 33 after Bobbi Morse gave them the intel on the whereabouts of her safehouse, Doctor Whitehall decided to personally oversee her brainwashing, hoping to turn her into a loyal HYDRA agent and assassin. Before he began, Whitehall poured himself a glass of extremely old and rare wine, explaining to her that he liked to enjoy the finer parts of life, while Sunil Bakshi took notes and she tried to break free.

A few hours into the session, Whitehall was interrupted by Sunil Bakshi, who requested permission to go on a mission to recapture rogue HYDRA agent Donnie Gill. Whitehall allowed him to go, saying he trusted in his judgement. He then continued to twist Agent 33's mind by explaining to her the details of HYDRA's intentions for causing chaos across the world. Despite her bold proclamation that she would never serve HYDRA and her many attempts to break her handcuffs, Whitehall succeeded in breaking Agent 33 after many hours of work.

When Sunil Bakshi returned from his mission in Morocco, he spoke with Whitehall and informed him that he had been unsuccessful in returning Donnie Gill to HYDRA's control and Gill had seemingly been killed during a firefight with S.H.I.E.L.D.. During their conversation, the brainwashed Agent 33 walked into Whitehall's office and handed him paperwork that needed his signature, informing him that she was now happy to comply. Once Agent 33 had left, Whitehall asked Bakshi about Jemma Simmons' loyalty to HYDRA, telling him that she could be reprogrammed if they deemed it necessary.

#### Meeting Raina

Having learned of a painting with the Words of Creation craved into the back, Whitehall sent Sunil Bakshi to collect it, disguised as General Glenn Talbot. During the mission, Bakshi reported that he had collected the painting but S.H.I.E.L.D. was also there, when Bakshi asked if he should come in, Whitehall ordered him and Agent 33 to attack and destroy the Bus using the Photostatic Veil.

Somehow, Whitehall found out that it was Raina who took the Obelisk. Tracking her down, Whitehall and a few of his men confronted Raina in her car. She initially attempted to talk her way out of the situation, but Whitehall instead planted a Control Device on her hand and told her that he was not like most men she encountered and would not be so easily swayed by her persuasion skills. He then threatened her that if she did not deliver the Obelisk to him in 48 hours, she would experience even more torture and eventually, a very slow and painful death before turning off the device and leaving.

#### Duplicating the Obelisk

Later, Whitehall and his scientists attempted to duplicate the Obelisk's power. HYDRA's demonstration at the wedding of Pete and Mariah Leitner ended with a few dead civilians and U.S. Navy officers, but that was not the result Whitehall hoped to achieve. Later, Whitehall had a meeting with his top scientists, including Dr. Lingenfelter, Jemma Simmons, and Kenneth Turgeon. He expressed his disappointment, but Simmons assured him that the Obelisk could be used for mass executions.

Later, after Bobbi Morse and Jemma Simmons escaped from the HYDRA Laboratories when their covers were exposed, Whitehall was discussing with Sunil Bakshi about moving to a new location when an unknown man broke into Whitehall's office. When the two guards tried to stop him, the stranger easily killed them. The man then opened the bag he was carrying to reveal the Obelisk inside. He offered to teach Whitehall not only how to use the power of the artifact, which he called the Diviner, but how to survive it. Whitehall asked for his motives, and he told him that the two had a common enemy: Phil Coulson.

#### A New Alliance

The new alliance soon proved to be very fruitful for HYDRA's research into the Diviner. Whitehall and Zabo sent schematics based on the work of Vincent Beckers and adapted with the power of the Diviner to Toshiro Mori to create the Splinter Bomb.

Later, on Whitehall's orders, a group of HYDRA operatives led by Marcus Scarlotti and disguised as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents attacked the United Nations Headquarters, creating a new wave of outrage against S.H.I.E.L.D. across the world. In coordination with Whitehall, Julien Beckers, the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs and a secret member of HYDRA, declared Belgium a safe heaven for all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, attracting many of them to his country. However, the trap was not as successful as Whitehall predicted. Only six S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were killed and Beckers, Scarlotti and his team were captured by S.H.I.E.L.D. and the United States Armed Forces under General Talbot.

#### Recruiting Grant Ward

Whitehall had a meeting with Grant Ward, who found him without the help of Sunil Bakshi. Whitehall spoke to Ward about second chances and allowed him to rejoin HYDRA before he showed him news footage of the alleged murder-suicide of his brother Christian Ward and his parents, which Whitehall was aware was a murder committed by Grant Ward to destroy his brother's legacy and get revenge for the years of torment he had suffered.

During their meeting, Calvin Zabo returned from his encounter with Phil Coulson and introductions were made. Whitehall stated that he believed that together, with their combined knowledge of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Diviner, there was much that they could achieve for HYDRA. Ward asked about Zabo's encounter with Coulson, explaining that he was a former member of Coulson's Team. He explained that his encounter with Coulson had not been wasted as he felt it was always good to look your enemy right in the eye, before making eye-contact with Whitehall. Somehow, Whitehall learned that Jiaying was Zabo's wife and that Zabo was there seeking revenge on Whitehall for her murder years before.

#### Search for the Kree City

Learning that Raina was one of those who survived touching the Obelisk, Whitehall sent a few agents to find her. Led by Agent 33, they found her in Vancouver, but when they tried to kidnap her, she was saved by a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and taken onboard the Bus. Whitehall was called by Agent 33, who informed him about the failure of the operation. When Agent 33 said that Raina had a Tracker on her, Whitehall replied that he would send his best man to take care of the situation.

When Whitehall met with Agent 33, she told him that Grant Ward successfully captured Raina but he also obtained Agent Skye from the Bus, promising that the four HYDRA quinjets surrounding the plane would not fire if she came willingly. Whitehall told her that Ward did not have the authority to give such a promise and ordered her to authorize an attack. Some time later, Whitehall was informed about the location of the alien city. It was buried under the city of San Juan in Puerto Rico. Whitehall also learned that Skye was Calvin Zabo's daughter.

#### Taking Charge

Scanning the city through the ground, Whitehall's men discovered the temple inside the city was located exactly a couple hundred feet beneath the Ponce de León Theater. They quietly occupied the theater and started drilling right through the volcanic rock in order to finally discover what the Diviner could really do.

When Whitehall arrived to San Juan, he came to the theater, where he ordered a meeting. With Calvin Zabo, Raina, Grant Ward, and a captured Skye assembled, Whitehall expressed his gratitude to Zabo, but asked Ward why he did not order the destruction of the S.H.I.E.L.D. plane from which Raina and Skye were taken. As Agent 33 brought the Diviner, Whitehall ordered Skye to take it from its box. When she did that and the symbols appeared, she attacked one agent with it, killing him. Zabo also killed one agent, and Ward pointed his pistol at Whitehall's men. However, the mutiny was short-lived. When the mutineers were disarmed, Whitehall told Skye that he hoped she was special like her mother.

#### Battle for the Kree City

Later, in another section of the theater where Ward and Skye were restrained, Whitehall came to gloat over Zabo. As Zabo attempted to kill him, Whitehall shocked him with the remotely controlled miniature Control Device implanted on his neck. As Zabo fell down, Whitehall told Skye about her mother's apparent immortality, he expressed his hopes that that was Skye's special ability too, vowing to discover the truth through experimentation. But just as he told Zabo that he wanted him to watch as he butchered his daughter, Phil Coulson and a team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents attacked the theater. Whitehall and Agent 33 then left the room to deal with the intruders.

In the main corridor, Whitehall gave orders to his men to clean the theater floor by floor. Immediately after he was left alone, Calvin Zabo suddenly appeared, intending to finally kill Whitehall for murdering his wife years before. Whitehall calmly aimed his pistol at the doctor, but just as he was about to shoot him, Phil Coulson snuck up behind him and shot him twice in the back, killing him. Zabo became outraged for not being able to exact his revenge and kill Whitehall himself. Whitehall's death left a void in HYDRA's leadership ranks that S.H.I.E.L.D. believed raised Sunil Bakshi's value.

## Powers and Abilities

### Powers

* **Longevity**: While originally an elderly man from World War II, Whitehall was able to reverse the aging process by transplanting Jiaying's blood and organs to himself. This restored the former appearance of his prime, along with its matching health and vitality. Until his death, his aging was slowed down so much that he showed no noticeable signs of aging between 1989 and 2014.

### Abilities

* **Master Tactician**: Whitehall possessed military knowledge and skills of a World War II general, improved with years of study while imprisoned at the Rat. Once he re-joined HYDRA following his liberation, he assumed a leadership role within the organization, harvesting resources for HYDRA while developing a long-term strategy to gain access to the Obelisk that was taken from him by the Strategic Scientific Reserve.
* **Master Scientist**: Whitehall was one of the top scientists in HYDRA during World War II, focusing in the study of an ancient eastern myth that led to the discovery of the Obelisk, and once found, he sought to weaponize its effects, even killing countless human subjects to analyze its properties.
* **Expert Physician**: Whitehall had advanced medical skills and knowledge, being able to vivisect Jiaying in order to analyze and harvest her blood and organs, later ordering to transplant her organs on himself.
* **Multilingualism**: Whitehall speaks fluent German and English. He can speak English with a perfect American accent.

## Appearances

* *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*
	+ *Season Two*
		- *The Things We Bury* (flashbacks)
		- *Shadows* (flashbacks)
		- *The Things We Bury* (flashbacks)
		- *Shadows*
		- *Heavy is the Head* (mentioned)
		- *Making Friends and Influencing People*
		- *Face My Enemy*
		- *A Hen in the Wolf House*
		- *A Fractured House* (mentioned)
		- *The Writing on the Wall* (mentioned)
		- *The Things We Bury*
		- *Ye Who Enter Here*
		- *What They Become*
		- *Aftershocks* (mentioned)
		- *Who You Really Are* (mentioned)
		- *One of Us* (mentioned)
		- *Love in the Time of HYDRA* (mentioned)
		- *One Door Closes* (mentioned)
		- *The Frenemy of My Enemy* (mentioned)
		- *The Dirty Half Dozen* (mentioned)
		- *Scars* (mentioned)
		- *S.O.S. Part Two* (mentioned)

## Trivia

### Comic Notes

* In the comics, Daniel Whitehall is a legendary member of HYDRA known as the **Kraken**.

### Character Notes

* Both Daniel Whitehall and John Garrett were members of the Great Wheel of the Zodiac, a collection of eleven of the most experienced espionage leaders in the Marvel Comics main continuity. Other prominent members that already appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe were Nick Fury, Dum Dum Dugan and Wolfgang von Strucker.
* Daniel Whitehall's death marks the second time Phil Coulson had killed a main antagonist in *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*.

## References

1. ↑ Werner Reinhardt's SSR File.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.01: Shadows*
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.08: The Things We Bury*
4. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.12: Who You Really Are*
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.11: Aftershocks*
6. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.02: Heavy is the Head*
7. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.03: Making Friends and Influencing People*
8. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.04: Face My Enemy*
9. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.05: A Hen in the Wolf House*
10. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.06: A Fractured House*
11. ↑ *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.09: Ye Who Enter Here*
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 2.10: What They Become*