(Updated 07/15/2024)
With the release of THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER, Thor became the first MCU hero to reach a four-film milestone. But he won’t be the last. Depending on how you reckon the CAPTAIN AMERICA series, that is.
What does that mean? Well, it goes like this. CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD will be the fourth MCU movie that starts with the words CAPTAIN AMERICA. But this won't be a new adventure starring Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, because Evans exited the Marvel stage after AVENGERS: ENDGAME.
This movie is about the new Captain America, Sam Wilson. If you watched "The Falcon And The Winter Soldier," which chronicled Wilson's journey to accepting the Captain America title, this is old news to you. But there's a lot of Wilson's story that is yet to come. And it will also be the doorway for one of our favorite actors to enter the MCU.
So is this the fourth CAPTAIN AMERICA movie or the first NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA movie? It’s all a matter of perspective. Here's everything you need to know, including a trailer that teases a hulking new villain.
What's the Captain America: Brave New World Release Date?
CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD will open exclusively in movie theaters on February 14, 2025.
Watch the First Trailer for Captain America: Brave New World
The first trailer for CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD introduces a version of America in which General Thaddeus Ross has been elected President, There's at least one threat to Ross's life, and probably more than that going on, but this trailer is about scene-setting more than it is about plot. Oh, and there's a Hulk! But he's…. red?
What Is Captain America: Brave New World About?
Marvel is being vague about key plot details for BRAVE NEW WORLD, but we know that it will detail Sam Wilson’s struggle to accept his new life as Captain America, and the collision between his sense of duty and the demands of a new President.
We also wonder if this movie might advance Sam’s story by having him put together a new version of The Avengers. After all, post-ENDGAME, it’s hard to say who is an Avenger at this point.
Indeed, that seems to be the overall idea in the movie, at least at the beginning. In the footage screened at CinemaCon, Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross — now the newly-elected President of the United States of America — asks Wilson to reform the Avengers. But he'll have to contend with several forms of resistance, some of which comes from other super-soldiers. The trailer seems to show those other soldiers in action.
Who Is In Captain America: Brave New World?
Anthony Mackie returns as Sam Wilson. When it comes to recognizable heroes, he won’t be the last. For instance, it’s very difficult to imagine this movie without Wilson’s best frenemy Bucky Barnes. Since Bucky will be in Marvel's THUNDERBOLTS*, we hope he shows up here as well.
Many of Sam Wilson's other "Falcon and the Winter Soldier" pals will also show up in THUNDERBOLTS*, so we might not see them here. But Danny Ramirez and Carl Lumbly reprise their respective roles of Joaquin Torres and Isaiah Bradley from the series, and Tim Blake Nelson will turn up as Samuel Sterns, aka the Leader. He was originally seen in one of the very first MCU movies, 2008's THE INCREDIBLE HULK. There's another returning actor from that movie, too: Liv Tyler will be back as Betty Ross. And Giancarlo Esposito plays a character who is yet to be named, but rumors suggest he is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named G.W. Bridge.
And then there's one more new addition…
Harrison Ford Joins the MCU
The character Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross has been set for BRAVE NEW WORLD since the movie's original conception. He was last seen in BLACK WIDOW, played by William Hurt, who first played the part in THE INCREDIBLE HULK. But Hurt passed away in March 2022.
Now Harrison Ford has stepped into the role of Ross for BRAVE NEW WORLD — and he will appear in THUNDERBOLTS as well. The movie's first trailer even references the new casting with a glib line about the character's missing mustache. We don't like the reason for this recasting, and we're also curious to see Ford's superstar presence in Marvel's lineup.
Is Red Hulk the Same as the Green Hulk?
The trailer above teases the appearance of Red Hulk, a variant of the classic Marvel character that was introduced in 2008. But Red Hulk is not simply an angrier Bruce Banner. The monster is the alter-ego of Thunderbolt Ross, the character played here by Harrison Ford. In that respect, the idea of Ford performaning a big CG character like the Red Hulk is equally surprising and appealing.
Who Is Making Captain America: Brave New World?
BRAVE NEW WORLD is directed by Julius Onah, who has been best known for directing THE CLOVERFIELD PARADOX. He also directed the popular Sundance indie, LUCE.
And while we know we've mentioned "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" often, there's a good reason: Marvel is using that series as a jumping-off point for this movie, from a staffing standpoint as well as a creative one. Malcolm Spellman and Dalan Musson, who wrote on the series, are writing BRAVE NEW WORLD, too.
Read more about Marvel's upcoming movies!
All images courtesy of Marvel Studios.