Captain America Brave New World's new release date, casting news and everything we know so far
Anthony Mackie is flying into Captain America 4 — which just got a new title and a later release date.
His character, Sam Wilson, took up the mantle in the finale of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. He will take over for his friend, Steve Rogers, portrayed by Chris Evans in the first three Captain America movies and Avengers team-ups.
Captain America 4, aka "Captain America: Brave New World", is being written by "Falcon and Winter Soldier" head writer Malcolm Spellman and another of the show's writers, Dalan Musson. Julius Onah ("The Cloverfield Paradox") is directing.
Here's everything we know so far about Captain America 4.
Captain America 4's new title revealed
In the below Instagram post, Anthony Mackie revealed that "New World Order" is yesterday's title, and that Captain America 4 is now "Captain America: Brave New World".
A post shared by Anthony Mackie (@anthonymackie)
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It's unclear why the name change happened, but since the phrase "New World Order" is the name of a conspiracy theory about a totalitarian world government, we could see Marvel wanting to distance itself from that.
Captain America 4 release date
This upcoming Captain America movie was supposed to come out on May 3, 2024, but then it got changed to June 26, as was previously announced at Comic-Con. The new release date came in a swarm of Marvel, Star Wars and Avatar release date changes.
However, there has been another change. "Brave New World" has a solid release date of February 14, 2025, which means we have to wait just a little bit longer.
Captain America 4 cast grows with a WWE wrestler
As Deadline and other outlets reported, Anthony Mackie is set to return as Sam Wilson, who took up the title of Captain America in the finale of "Falcon and Winter Soldier". Deadline later confirmed that Harrison Ford will be in the film as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, and he's also going to be in Marvel's "Thunderbolts" movie.
Tim Blake Nelson and Liv Tyler will reprise the roles of Samuel Sterns and Betty Ross, characters last seen in "The Incredible Hulk". Sterns becomes a big-headed villain known as The Leader, and Betty is the daughter of Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross.
The latest new cast member is the WWE's own Seth Rollins (whose real name is Colby Lopez). ComicBook.com reports that Rollins looks as if he is a member of the villainous Serpent Society.
It's unknown if Sebastian Stan will be back as Bucky Barnes, a.k.a the Winter Soldier. The two characters are both friends of Steve Rogers and developed their own partnership in the Disney Plus series. Bucky has been in every Captain America movie, however, so we would be surprised if he didn't show up in this one.
Stan at least is very excited about Mackie's ascension as Captain America, as he reacted positively to the casting news on Instagram:
There are also question marks about Emily VanCamp's Sharon Carter, Wyatt Russell's John Walker, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus' Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. The latter made a cameo in the post-credits scene of "Black Widow" and looks to figure into future movies.
Speaking of "Falcon and Winter Soldier" characters, Danny Ramirez is back as Joaquin Torres, and will take on the mantle of the Falcon. Carl Lumbly reprises the role of Isaiah Bradley.
Shira Haas is another new cast member, and she will play as Ruth Bat-Seraph, A.K.A. Sabra. This character is a supernatural being who can transfer her life energy to others and grant superpowers to people individually.
Recently though, there has been a major casting update. Giancarlo Esposito will play a villain in "Brave New World". The Hollywood Reporter stated that Esposito has joined a 22-day shoot as a villainous character. As of June 3, we don't know his name or official role in the movie.
There are more supporting characters joining the movie, and so we have compiled a list of every confirmed cast member:
Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson, the new Captain America
Harrison Ford as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, the new President of the United States and potential Red Hulk
Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns, who was once exposed to gamma radiation in "The Incredible Hulk"
Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, the daughter of Thaddeus Ross
Seth Rollins as an unknown character, possibly the Serpent Society leader King Cobra
Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres, who will take the mantle of Falcon
Carl Lumbly as Isaiah Bradley, a Korean War veteran who was unwillingly subjected to the Super Soldier Serum
Shira Haas as Ruth Bat-Seraph "Sabra", a supernatural being with great powers
Giancarlo Esposito as an unknown character, possibly the villain
Xosha Roquemore in an unknown role
Rosa Salazar in an unknown role
Captain America 4 plot and possible comics storylines
Very few details are known about the plot of Captain America 4. However, we can speculate about a few things. Sam is new to being Captain America, so the movie may revolve around his transition in the role.
"The Falcon and Winter Soldier" left a few dangling plot threads that could be addressed in Captain America 4. John Walker, who served briefly as Captain America, is still around and his U.S. Agent could be the primary antagonist. And then there's Sharon Carter, who was revealed as the Power Broker. She received a pardon in the finale but is also planning to use her reinstated status for nefarious purposes.
As far as possible storylines from the comics, many fans are hoping to see an adaptation of the original "Secret Empire" from the 1970s (not the new one!). In it, Steve discovers a far-reaching government conspiracy. He's framed by the cabal for murder, which leads the public to shun him. Considering how FAWS brought institutionalized racism into its story, the "Secret Empire" plot could be adapted to do the same to fit Sam. And Sharon, Valentina and John Walker could all easily be involved.
Digital Spy also revealed that Marvel producer Nate Moore teased a new arc for Sam as Captain America. "I think he's not Steve Rogers and I think that's a good thing. Because to me, this new Cap is Rocky. He's going to be the underdog in any situation. He's not a super soldier. He's not a hundred years old. He doesn't have the Avengers. What happens next with this guy who announces publicly, without the support, 'I'm the new Captain America'."
Moore also went on to say: "He's a guy with wings and a shield, but he is a guy. So, we're going to put him through the wringer and make him earn it, and see what happens when he is outweighed, outclassed, out-everything."
