- Releasing worldwide in mid-February
- Will be the second-to-last Marvel Phase 5 film
- Trailers released last July and November
- Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson/Captain America is the movie's protagonist
- Harrison Ford among its supporting cast
- Story synopsis unveiled in July 2024
- Other plot details leaked online
- Unclear how it'll set up future MCU movies, including the next two Avengers flicks
Captain America: Brave New World is almost here, everyone. At the time of this guide's latest update, it's exactly one month until the first Marvel movie of the year flies into theaters. There's no time like now, then, to learn everything about it.
Below, I've rounded up all of the most important news (and occasional rumor) on Captain America 4. That includes its official release date – February 14, for anyone wondering – as well as its confirmed cast, story synopsis, trailers, and more.
Full spoilers follow for Falcon and the Winter Soldier (FATWS), which is the most notable Marvel project that precedes Captain America: Brave New World. Potential cast and plot spoilers follow for the forthcoming flick, too, so proceed at your own risk.
Captain America: Brave New World release date
Enter a brave new world.Marvel Studios’ #CaptainAmericaBraveNewWorld arrives only in theaters February 14. pic.twitter.com/W6vBmRJWWdDecember 13, 2024
As I mentioned, Captain America: Brave New World lands in theaters worldwide on February 14.
The Marvel Phase 5 movie was originally scheduled for release on May 3, 2024, but the 2023 Hollywood strikes led to the delay of multiple Marvel films' releases and development cycles. That contingent included Sam Wilson's first silver screen outing as the titular shield-wielding superhero, with the movie initially being pushed to July 26, 2024 before its third and current launch date was announced in November 2023.
Captain America: Brave New World trailer
Captain America: Brave New World's official trailer was unveiled last November. Alongside a new Thunderbolts movie teaser, Captain America 4's latest trailer suggested Marvel Phase 5 would go out with a bang rather than a whimper, too.
The flick's latest teaser arrived four months after Captain America: Brave New World's first trailer, which premiered in July 2024. That was the first time the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) flick revealed it was returning to the film series' political thriller vibes. Oh, and that legendary actor Harrison Ford was not only playing Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross in the movie but he'd also be hulk-ing out as Ross' iconic Red Hulk alter-ego.
Captain America: Brave New World cast
Potential spoilers follow for Captain America: Brave New World.
Here's the confirmed cast for Captain America 4 so far:
- Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America
- Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres/Falcon
- Harrison Ford as Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross/Red Hulk
- Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns/The Leader
- Shira Haas as Rut Bat-Seraph
- Carl Lumbly as Isaiah Bradley
- Giancarlo Esposito as Seth Voelker/Sidewinder
- Liv Tyler as Betty Ross
- Takehiro Hira as Ozaki
- Xosha Roquemore as TBC
- Rosa Salazar as TBC
Some of the above actors and their Marvel characters will be familiar to MCU fans. Wilson has been ever-present since 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Meanwhile, Ramirez and Lumbly made their debuts in FATWS, and Nelson and Tyler played supporting roles in 2010's The Incredible Hulk – a flick some readers might have forgotten is an MCU movie. It was the second Marvel Studios film to arrive after 2008's Iron Man – you can learn more about this duo in our Marvel movies in order guide.
On the newcomer front, veteran actor Harrison Ford was hired to play Ross following William Hurt's passing in March 2022. As mentioned, Ford will also portray Red Hulk, a much angrier and seemingly unstoppable version of Bruce Banner's gamma-irradiated superpowered alias.
Haas is playing Bat-Seraph, a Marvel character whose backstory has been significantly altered from her comic book counterpart. In the source material, she's an Israeli superhero known as Sabra – another of Marvel's many mutants who possesses numerous superhuman abilities, including being able to withstand high-caliber rounds. However, per Marvel.com, her MCU adaptation has been retooled to turn her into a former Black Widow and one of Ross' closest confidantes.
Meanwhile, Hira will play Japanese Prime Minister Ozaki, who'll likely have a small role in the proceedings. The same is expected of Esposito's Sidewinder, who'll be a secondary antagonist in Captain America 4 and is the leader of a villainous group known as the Serpent Society, of which Salazar's character, believed to be named Diamondback, is a part of. However, WWE wrestler Seth Rollins, who was said to be involved, recently suggested (via SEScoops.com) that his role had been completely cut, so he won't appear as part of the Serpent Society. Lastly, Roquemore is involved as an unnamed secret agent.
There are other characters rumored to appear in Captain America 4, but we won't spoil them ahead of time. Two individuals we don't expect to make cameos, though, are Sebastien Stan's James 'Bucky' Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier, and Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner/The Hulk.
Where 'Bucky' is concerned, he's part of Thunderbolts' ensemble which arrives in theaters next May. It wouldn't make sense for him to be involved in this film, then, if he's caught up in events elsewhere. As for Banner, despite Ruffalo appearing to suggest (during a chat at the 2024 Santa Barbara International Film Festival) that he'll show up, Variety reports that he misspoke about his involvement.
Captain America: Brave New World plot synopsis and speculation
Potential spoilers follow for Captain America: Brave New World.
Here's the movie's official plot synopsis: "Captain America: Brave New World follows Sam Wilson who, after meeting with newly elected U.S. President Thaddeus Ross, finds himself in the middle of an international incident. He must discover the reason behind a nefarious global plot before the true mastermind has the entire world seeing red."
That's not much to go on, but Captain America 4's cast and crew have provided some additional details about its story – starting with the titular hero.
Speaking to Empire magazine, director Julius Onah spoke about the challenges that Wilson will face in Brave New World. "Part of the challenge for Sam as Captain America, working within the government, is the way he’s going to make decisions,” Onah said. "The point of view he’s going to have will, at times, put him at odds with the president. Sam [also] finds himself almost standing between Samuel Sterns and what he thinks the government owes him, and how he wants to go about getting that.
"The action in this movie is incredibly exciting because this is a guy who can break, this is a guy who can bleed," Onah added. "We get to have a lot of fun pushing him to the limit."
It sounds like Wilson will be put through the wringer, then! Considering he'll be going up against Red Hulk, that's to be expected, but how will Wilson, who isn't a Super Soldier like Steve Rogers, withstand an assault from a far more menacing Hulk who can melt matter with his radiated skin? Speaking at Disney's 2024 APAC Content Showcase in Singapore, Mackie explained how his character may level the playing field.
"With Sam, him being a counselor, he uses more of his brains than brawn," Mackie said (via comicbookmovie.com). "When you don’t have the [super soldier] serum, you have to be smart and engineer different ways of defeating [enemies]. He uses more of his wit than his fist. He’s more of a friend to everyone."
That said, Wilson won't solely rely on his intellect when going to-to-toe with red Hulk. Per Entertainment Weekly (EW), producer Nate Moore confirmed Wilson's Cap will get a new vibranium-infused wingsuit to combat Ross' rage-filled alias. "We're very conscious of not having the movie feel disingenuous," Moore said. "So, giving Sam equipment to survive is different than giving Sam equipment to succeed."
#CaptainAmericaBraveNewWorld details • It's a return to the grounded aspects of 'The Winter Soldier' • Giancarlo Esposito will play Sidewinder — King of the Serpent Society• Celestials are made out of Adamantium • Harrison Ford turns into Red Hulk while giving a… pic.twitter.com/EbVHVQ5AT3July 28, 2024
And what of the new Captain America-Falcon dynamic that was introduced in FATWS? In another Empire article, Onah teased: "There’s this incredible big brother/little brother dynamic between them [Wilson and Torres]. It’s going to be one of the key emotional centers of the film."
The pair will not only have to get to the bottom of a conspiracy that sees Lumbly's Isaiah Bradley almost assassinate Ross, but also need to have each other's backs because of the geopolitical storm they become embroiled in. As Captain America: Brave New World's trailers teased, the world's biggest nations are after a brand-new material that's been discovered in the Indian Ocean.
Marvel Studios’ #CaptainAmericaBraveNewWorld arrives in theaters February 14. pic.twitter.com/PkB3yCgPD6November 9, 2024
The substance in question? Adamantium – yep, the very same metal that iconic X-Men member Wolverine's bones are coated in. Per online rumors, the precious metal is found on the corpse of Tiamut, aka the Celestial that was set to emerge from Earth's core in 2021's Eternals movie. However, thanks to Sersi's matter transmutation abilities and the titular team using their shared Uni-Mind powers, the group stops Tiamut's emergence (and Earth's subsequent destruction) by turning the Celestial to marble. It seems the group's combined efforts also created adamantium and, once it's discovered and its unique properties are scientifically proven, the US, Japan, and other first-world countries will apparently try to claim it as their own after diplomatic talks break down over who owns it.
There are plenty of other questions – many of which were conceived by fans after Brave New World's trailers were released – that need answering.
Why does Ross want Wilson to reform the Avengers if he was previously at odds with the group's formation? What role does Samuel Sterns/The Leader, who'll be brought to life via practical effects (per Empire magazine), have in proceedings? Who brainwashes Lumbly into trying to assassinate Ross? And how will Captain America 4 set up future MCU movies? We can't answer all those yet, but we'll deliver our best guesses about the last question in this guide's final section.
Where to watch the Captain America movies
Want to re-watch the other Captain America movies, or stream them for the first time, before Brave New World arrives? You can do so on Disney Plus.
The first three Captain America films, two of which are among the best Marvel movies, are viewable on one of the world's best streaming services, but you'll need to sign up to the platform to watch them. Read our Disney Plus price guide for more details on how to purchase a subscription.
How will Captain America: Brave New World set up future Marvel movies?
The short answer is: we aren't sure, but we can speculate on how it may set up some Marvel Phase 6 films.
Depending on how Captain America: Brave New World ends, we'd be surprised if Wilson doesn't try to reform the Avengers, although Moore said (per Empire magazine) that Cap 4 will ask the question if Sam Wilson is the right man to lead them. If he is, there are plenty of new recruits he could call upon to replace the likes of Iron Man and Black Widow. Veterans including Thor, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, and Doctor Strange would also answer the call if, well, they're called upon.
It'll be in the team's interests to regroup, too, ahead of the next two Avengers movies. Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars will cap off the Marvel Multiverse Saga – and, with The Fantastic Four's legendary villain Doctor Doom (who'll be played by none other than ex-Iron Man superstar Robert Downey Jr) set to be the main villain of that duology, Earth's Mightiest Heroes will be required to defend our world once more, not to mention the entire Marvel multiverse.
Looking further ahead, the emergence of adamantium in the MCU continues the long-drawn-out arrival of the X-Men. Marvel President Kevin Feige has already stated that the post-Secret Wars era will "lead us into a new age of mutants", and the introduction of the malleable metal in Brave New World is further proof that the X-Men's MCU debut is fast approaching. Considering they've been teased in everything from Ms Marvel and Deadpool and Wolverine to The Marvels and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it's high time they appeared, too.
