Schmidt desired to use the serum for himself but Erskine refused to hand it over to him, despite Schmidt's orders and even the threat of execution. In 1940, Schmidt had learned that, at long last, the first, unstable version of Abraham Erskine's Super Soldier Serum was now finished, thanks to Wilfred Malick who delivered the last ingredient of the serum. As the war continued, Schmidt had actively participated in several German conquests, earning several high military decorations, including the Panzer Badge and the Iron Cross First Class, and Schmidt may have also suffered a wound during combat to merit him the Wound Badge which he would wear on his own SS uniform.

In 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, thus starting World War II. Schmidt fights for the Nazis in World War II 'You work with Nazis even though you do not follow their ideology?' ―Johann Schmidt and Abraham Erskine

He will not be a member of any 'master race'. 'We know that the superior man will not be born, Professor Erskine. As Thanos had obtained the stone, Red Skull's curse was broken, and he was free to leave Vormir and pursue his own goals once more. Red Skull led them to it and disappeared after Thanos sacrificed Gamora as he claimed his prize. After seventy-three years on Vormir, Red Skull met Thanos and Gamora, as they sought the Soul Stone. Red Skull was teleported to Vormir, where he became trapped in a state of purgatory, becoming a Stonekeeper, a wraith advising those who sought the Soul Stone. However, the fight ended when Red Skull touched the Tesseract with his bare hands, prompting it to create a wormhole and send him elsewhere. Once Red Skull had launched his offensive, intending to bring the United States down onto its knees, he was intercepted by Captain America. However, Red Skull's plans were challenged by the Allies' only super soldier, Captain America, who destroyed the HYDRA facilities. While he led HYDRA, Red Skull had found the Tesseract which he had believed could help him to control the world.

Having become a confidant of Adolf Hitler during World War II, Schmidt gained ambitions to become the superior man, leading him to use the prototype of Abraham Erskine's Super Soldier Serum on himself, resulting in him becoming disfigured with a red face, gaining the name Red Skull. Johann Schmidt is the former head of HYDRA, the special weapons division of the Nazi Schutzstaffel and a modern-day incarnation of the ancient society. But it cast me out, banished me here, guiding others to a treasure I cannot possess.' ―Red Skull to Thanos 'A lifetime ago, I, too, sought the Stones.

Guarding his obsession