Tag: Sam Wilson

The surprising return of Tim Blake Nelson’s Samuel Sterns to the MCU has generated a great deal of excitement and speculation about what the character’s presence in Captain America: New World Order might men for Anthony Mackie’s Captain America. It’s been 14 years since Sterns was seen in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk when his character was exposed to some of the Hulk’s gamma irradiated blood and began his transformation into The Leader.

Now, Captain America: New World Order director Julius Onah gets to tell the next chapter in Sterns’ story and, according to him, it’s one of the reasons he took the job in the first place.

One of the things that really drew me to this project is The Leader is a man who operates from intellect. And it’s so great to have an adversary who is working with this incredible intellect to really put Sam through the wringer in this story. And again, it’s a paranoid thriller; it’s this grounded adventure where I think everything that happens in this film feels so real and intense because of who this adversary is. What he’s going to have to go through in this film is because he’s got an adversary who is so terrifyingly intelligent.

Julius Onah

Onah’s enthusiasm for The Leader and the challenge he’ll pose for Sam Wilson is encouraging. It sounds like Sam will find himself no closer than one step behind Sterns (and any possible accomplices of his) as he’s picked apart. Wilson may have to lean on his newly formed support network of Joaquin Torres and the Bradleys for some help as the “terrifyingly intelligent” Sterns’ plan unfolds. Just what Sterns will have in store for Cap will likely be kept in the dark until promotion for Captain America: New World Order starts ahead of its May 3rd, 2024 theatrical release.

Source: Phase Zero

As Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson has grown into larger roles over the course of his time in the MCU, there’s been a concerted effort on the part of Marvel Studios to evolve his fighting style. While he relied heavily on his sidearms during Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War, his array of flying fighting moves and the utility of his wings has grown over time. As The Falcon and The Winter Soldier VFX supervisor, Eric Leven, told Murphy’s Multiverse, a great deal of thought was put into his action sequences in that series, including how to incorporate the shield and how to reduce the amount of shooting he would do as Captain America.

Moving into his first feature film, Captain America: New World Order, Wilson’s action sequences have been handed off to Julius Onah, who is stepping into the MCU for the first tie. In an interview with Phase Zero, Onah discussed how they planned to handle Cap’s action without retreading old ground.

There’s a lot we’re going to bring to the table. Again, this is a new set of challenges and a new set of adversaries. I love classic, paranoid thrillers and that’s a big part of the inspiration for this film. We want to find action that is grounded and tactile and give him new things to do that you haven’t seen in those other films. I don’t want to spoil too much, but let’s just say we are planning some really, really exciting things.

Julius Onah

Onah’s mention of new adversaries is of note to those with a keen ear. While Tim Blake Nelson was announced as part of the cast at D23 Expo and his Samuel Sterns poses a formidable and cerebral threat, he’s certainly not the kind of character who typically engages in fisticuffs. Suddenly, who Cap might find himself squaring off against in the film becomes a very interesting question.

In the comics, Sterns was part of a group of radical and genius super-minds called the Intelligencia. However, like Sterns, most of them are more cerebral and less hands-on, though they could certainly devise a devious plan that could result in Captain America, Joaquin Torres, and new hero Sabra up against some major muscle.

We’ll wait to find out more as Captain America: New World Order won’t hit theaters until May 3, 2024.

Source: Phase Zero