Major spoilers ahead for Captain America: Brave New World. You’ve been warned.
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For all those keeping track, 2025 marks the end of Phase 5 of the MCU. The Multiverse Saga officially wraps up with Brave New World and the upcoming Thunderbolts*. It’s finally time for the new Cap to step up to the plate. Does Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) have what it takes to be one of the world’s most important superheroes – without actually being a super? Read on to find out.
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Captain America: Brave New World begins with the election of President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford). For those needing some background, Ross has been more or less responsible for dealing with the Avengers on the government end – mostly covered in Captain America: Civil War (2016). He, along with other nations, came up with the Sokovia Accords that were supposed to keep the Avengers under United Nations’ control. Needless to say, it didn’t turn out so well.
Ross gives a victory speech promising that, as a country, they’ll face all of the dangers and unprecedented threats “Together” – his slogan. News channels look back on Ross’s infamous public temper tantrums, and to events in The Incredible Hulk (2008), when Bruce Banner / Hulk (Edward Norton at the time) and The Abomination (Tim Roth) nearly destroyed Harlem. Much of the blame for that fell on Ross. They also reference Ross’s estrangement from his daughter, Dr. Betty Ross (Liv Tyler), who was Bruce’s girlfriend.
A few months later, Sam and new Falcon Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) head out on a mission to Mexico. Ross tasks them with finding mercenary Seth Voelker / Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito). He and his gang of fellow mercs have stolen something important that they’re selling to a mysterious buyer.
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Sam and Joaquin track Sidewinder to a church, where Sam shows off his impressive new Cap suit. Built by the Wakandans, it’s made of Vibranium (of course), and features razor-sharp wings that can cut through pretty much anything. His drone, Red Wing, has projectiles it can shoot like mini-missiles.
A huge merc distracts Sam, so he fights him while Sidewinder escapes. He gives Joaquin permission to don the Falcon gear and go after the package. He manages to get it while Sam fights the rest of the mercs. They return the package and report to Ross that all is well.
Then Sam takes Joaquin to meet Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly). We meet him in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (2021) as having received the super-serum before Steve Rogers. Sam wants Isaiah to train Joaquin, but Isaiah has doubts about Sam being the new Cap. He’s sure the government will use Sam just as they used him, having been imprisoned and experimented on for 30 years. But Sam tries to remain optimistic.
When Sam gets an invitation to a special presentation at the White House, he agrees to appear as long as Joaquin and Isaiah come with him. Sam and Joaquin make fun of Isaiah’s old suit, but he insists on wearing it, saying it was the suit he got married in. The guys try to forget all the world’s problems for a moment, and just enjoy being invited to the White House and riding in a limo drinking top-shelf champagne.
When they arrive, Secret Service agent Leila Taylor (Xosha Roquemore) takes Sam to meet Ross privately. Ross asks Sam to rebuild the Avengers team and be their leader. Sam is suspicious of Ross’s intent, but Ross assures him that things will be different this time. Then Sam, Joaquin and Isaiah sit in the front row for the presentation. Ross talks about the significant discovery of what they call “Celestial Island” in the Indian Ocean. Celestial Island is actually a portion of the massive skeleton of the Celestial Tiamut from Eternals (2021).
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Ross announces a treaty he’s working out with several other countries, to share in the exploration of the Celestial. Most importantly, the treaty will secure fair distribution of the precious element they’ve discovered – Adamantium (most famous for being the metal fused with Wolverine’s skeleton). I know, it’s like, wait – what? They’re only just discovering Adamantium now? We can only hope that will be explained, but it doesn’t happen here.
Suddenly, Isaiah and four other guys start shooting the place up. Isaiah takes aim at Ross, misses and then flees. Ross’s head of security, Ruth Bat-Seraph (Shira Haas) – a former Black Widow – takes care of the other guys. Sam chases down Isaiah to a park, where Isaiah snaps out of the trance he was in. Surrounded by cops and federal agents, Sam convinces a terrified Isaiah to give himself up.
Sam goes to Ross, who’s in his bunker with Ruth. They of course believe it was a coordinated assassination attempt. But Sam tries to tell them that Isaiah wasn’t aware of what was going on. Ross tells Sam he’s too personally involved to be objective and cruelly reminds him that he’s not Steve Rogers.
Sam visits Isaiah at the prison and tries to go through the night’s events so they can figure out how he was being controlled. But Isaiah’s despondent, telling Sam it’s no use. He’s going to die in prison. He then tells Sam if he really cares about him, he won’t come back.
While driving back, Sam calls Joaquin, who’s going through the surveillance footage. He says that Isaiah and the other guys were all looking at their phones before the attack. They were staring at patterns of light and an old song, “Mr. Blue” by the Fleetwoods, was playing. Sam realizes the music and lights must work like the trigger words Hydra used with Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).
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Then suddenly, Sam’s ambushed by Sidewinder, who blows up Sam’s truck. Sam of course escapes beforehand and fights him. He finally gets the upper hand and knocks Sidewinder out. As agents take him away, Sam grabs Sidewinder’s cell phone as it rings. He talks to the guy on the other end – the buyer of the package in Mexico. The guy congratulates Sam on beating Sidewinder, but says Sam’s not going to like what comes next.
Meanwhile, Ross conferences with the other world leaders involved with the treaty. Except Japan, whose Prime Minister Ozaki (Takehiro Hira) is threatening to cut off ties after the attack. The other world leaders threaten to abandon the treaty as well. Ross pleads with them to give him more time to smooth things over with Ozaki and get Japan back to the bargaining table.
Sam brings Sidewinder’s phone to Joaquin, and they trace the call from the buyer to a site called Camp Echo One. Meanwhile, Ruth goes to the prison where the shooters are being held. She witnesses one of the guards suddenly undergoing mind control via the song. The guard kills the four shooters and then tries for Isaiah. But Ruth stops him, at which point the guard kills himself.
The buyer calls Ross and tells him a shift in power is coming. He’s had enough of being Ross’s slave and tool. Meanwhile, Sam and Joaquin arrive at Camp Echo One, using Red Wing to break in. Turns out it’s a secret lab, where the genetic information of a large number of people – including Isaiah, the shooters and Ross – is stored. Sam also finds a cache of pills. He realizes this is where the mind control method was created.
Then the buyer shows up, revealing himself to be Samuel Sterns / The Leader (Tim Blake Nelson). In The Incredible Hulk, Sterns is the scientist Bruce Banner went to for help in developing a cure (a bit of trivia – “Mr. Blue” was the codename Bruce used for him).
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Sterns ended up getting injected with gamma radiation. Instead of becoming a full Hulk, Sterns’ brain grew to a massive, mutant size, along with his intelligence. He plans to get his revenge on Ross by causing global chaos.
Sterns leaves Sam and Joaquin to face down a bunch more mercs. Then Ruth shows up and helps defeat them. More agents arrive to arrest them, but they’re also hit with the mind-control song. Sam knocks them all out with a super-throw of the shield, and they escape.
Meanwhile, Ross goes to Japan to meet with Ozaki, who’s not interested in partnering with Ross anymore. Ozaki’s furious with him, not only because of the attack but also because he’s gotten intel about the whole thing in Mexico. Ross stole the Adamantium sample that was supposed to be theirs. Then when Sidewinder snatched it, Ross used Captain America to steal it back.
The mounting pressure on Ross shows as his behavior becomes more erratic. He’s taking pills for a heart condition (the same ones Sam found in the lab), but fatigue and stress are affecting his ability to keep control. Agent Taylor seems to be there as much to calm him down as to protect him.
Sam meets up with Cmdr. Dennis Dunphy (William Mark McCullough), a buddy of his from the Army. He gives Dunphy the pills and asks him to find out what they’re made of. He then goes to visit Sidewinder in prison and makes a bargain to trade info for a transfer to a better facility.
Sidewinder tells him about Sterns’ mutation and how Ross upped his gamma dosage. He used Stearns as his own personal think tank. Sidewinder tells Sam they were hired to destroy any chance of the treaty being signed and to start a war. Before Sam leaves, Sidewinder informs him that he’ll definitely escape from whatever facility they stick him in.
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Sam finds out that Ross and Ozaki have sent their naval fleets to Celestial Island. Sam and Joaquin fly out there to confront Ross and keep the conflict from escalating. In private, Ross confides that it was Sterns who saved him with those pills – pills that have gamma radiation in them. Ross says he couldn’t let Sterns go for fear he would stop making the pills.
Sterns secretly shows up and gains access to two pilots. He uses the “Mr. Blue” song to control them, sending them to attack the Japanese fleet. Sam and Joaquin jump into the fray. Joaquin ejects one of the pilots, while Sam takes care of the other. But Joaquin gets caught in the explosion and falls out of the sky, slamming into the water.
Back on the carrier, Ross becomes overwhelmed with stress again. Sterns calls him and goads him, trying to talk Ross into losing control. Ross begins to change, his eyes going red and his muscles expanding. But Ruth and Agent Taylor calm him down.
Sam prevents another plane from impacting the Japanese carrier. The Japanese pilots inform Prime Minister Ozaki that Captain America saved their lives. So, Ozaki stands his fleet down, and things are settled for the moment.
Joaquin’s taken to the hospital for surgery. While Sam watches, who should appear but Bucky Barnes. He only stays for a moment, just long enough to give Sam encouragement and a bro-hug. Oh, yeah, and to let us all know he’s running for Congress. Again, a wait – what? moment. But then, bam, he’s out.
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Sterns uses a device to stop Dunphy’s heart and kill him before he can tell Sam about the pills. And back at the White House, Ross tries calling Betty, who actually answers. They have a short but civil conversation, and Betty agrees to take a walk with him to see the famous cherry blossoms.
Sterns finds Sam and lets himself get arrested, but the next part of his plan is already in motion. Sterns says the whole world will see Ross as the “monster” he truly is. And while addressing reporters outside the White House, Ross becomes agitated by the uncomfortable questions – so much so that his rage takes over and activates the gamma radiation. In full view of the press, Ross turns into the Red Hulk.
Agents try shooting at him as Ross / Red Hulk goes on a rampage, destroying part of the White House in the process. Sam flies in and manages to draw Ross’s attention, leading him away from the public, to the Basin where the cherry trees are. Sam tries saying that Betty wouldn’t want this. But his attempt to use Ross’s memories to calm him doesn’t work.
Sam gets a few good licks in, but Red Hulk is just too strong, nearly destroying the new Cap suit – beating it up enough to weaken the Vibranium before pulling one of the wings off. Sam admits he should’ve taken the super-serum. And all he can do is use the shield when Ross punches it, causing a huge shockwave that knocks them both down. Sam tries talking Ross down again, and this time, at the mention of Betty, his rage subsides. Red Hulk disappears and leaves a weakened Ross to be taken away by federal agents.
Isaiah gets released from prison, fully exonerated. Ruth even brings him his old suit, freshly cleaned and pressed. While the White House undergoes major repairs, Sam visits The Raft prison, where Ross is. Ross admits it’s the best place for him until they can figure out what to do for him. Then Sam reveals a special guest – Betty.
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Sam goes to the hospital to visit Joaquin. He confides that being Captain America is a huge responsibility, one that causes him to question whether he can live up to the name. Not just for himself but for all minorities who see themselves in him. Joaquin makes Sam feel better by telling him that he was the inspiration for his wanting to be Falcon.
And in the post-credits scene, Sam visits Sterns at The Raft. Sterns tells Sam that, with his augmented intelligence, he’s seen all probabilities. Threats from other worlds – and other universes – will be coming for Earth.
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Ever since Avengers: Endgame (2019), Marvel has struggled to recreate the magic of what’s known as the Infinity Saga (MCU Phases 1-3). The excellence in storytelling and just bringing epic amounts of fun and visual spectacle to the screen are what Marvel continues to chase but can’t seem to recapture.
And unfortunately, so it goes for Captain America: Brave New World. As Sam Wilson’s debut as the new Cap, this one is an important flick to get right. Brave New World should demonstrate Sam’s ability to be the eventual leader of the Avengers team. It’s also where we see whether Sam is up to the task of replacing Steve Rogers as the Avengers’ heart and soul.
The answer to those “ifs” by the end of the flick should be a resounding yes. But sadly, even though Mackie shows off Sam’s integrity, patriotism and kindness in spades, Brave New World leaves you worried for the future of not only Cap but the whole of the MCU.
You can immediately tell that Captain America: Brave New World is following the blueprint of Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), which was an amazing blend of superhero spectacle and ’70s political conspiracy thriller. And Brave New World does present an intriguing new global situation. The inclusion of the Celestial (which gets Marvel off the hook for leaving such a literally huge loose end after Eternals) and having Thaddeus Ross as the new President, makes for instant conflict.
And to his credit, Harrison Ford’s portrayal of Ross is one of the flick’s highlights. Ford gets to mine more emotional territory than William Hurt ever got to. We see a different side of Ross as someone trying to turn things around in his personal life and on the world stage. Watching him try to stop himself from Hulk-ing out is pretty cool.
But Brave New World isn’t about Ross. It’s about Sam. Of course, Anthony Mackie delivers a solid performance and maintains that essential good-guy level head. And in a few (but not enough) places, he shows how wearing the mantle weighs heavily on him, especially with the added burden of race. He, Joaquin and especially Isaiah show us the flip side of being a hero and the unjust treatment that often goes along with not being white. And how important it is for Sam to succeed as the first (official) Black Captain America.
That said, Brave New World isn’t even about race. It’s about Sam. And even though he’s got a terrifically tricked-out Vibranium suit and Kevlar undies, it’s really not enough. Every time he gets in a fight, he’s in a situation where, even with the suit and his insane training, he should end up seriously injured. I just couldn’t buy that Sam could go up against a Hulk alone and survive. I mean, Tony Stark had the “Veronica” Hulk-buster suit and gear and still got his butt kicked.
And having Sam say he should’ve taken the serum – while appreciated – doesn’t fix the problem. If he’s going to be Cap, I’m sorry, but he needs to suck it up and take the damned super-serum.
All that said, it’s not that there isn’t anything to like in Brave New World. Having such a strong link to the older Incredible Hulk flick is pretty cool. And you can never go wrong with having Giancarlo Esposito involved. Danny Ramirez, Carl Lumbly, Shira Haas and Xosha Roquemore are also welcome additions to the story, even if they don’t get enough to do. And the big action sequences, while not quite big or long enough, are done well.
Overall, though, Captain America: Brave New World isn’t what it should’ve been. It’s all over the place tonally and doesn’t run smoothly – which is what tends to happen when you have five credited writers (and who knows how many more uncredited). It’s got too much going on and doesn’t put enough focus on what it should, which is Sam. Even with Mackie’s respectable performance, Sam gets so lost in his own story. That’s the biggest crime that Brave New World commits. And if Sam can’t stand out as Cap, it doesn’t bode well for the new generation of Avengers.
Directed by: Julius Onah
Written by: Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, Julius Onah, Peter Glanz
Release date: Feb 14, 2025
Rating: R
Run time: 1hr, 58min
Distributor: Marvel Studios / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
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