Is Sam Wilson the New Leader of the Avengers? ’Captain America: Brave New World’s Director Shares a Promising Tease

Captain America: Brave New World

By Adam Blevins

Published Feb 5, 2025

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We're just over one week away from the release of Captain America: Brave New World, the MCU's first feature film of 2025 that will see Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) take over the moniker of Captain America from Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) on the big screen for the first time. However, as MCU fans well know, Steve Rogers was much more than just Captain America. Rogers was the anchor and leader of The Avengers throughout the Infinity Saga, so much so that Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) even says "Oh he's the boss. I just pay for everything." During a recent interview with Collider's Garrett Blaney to promote Brave New World, director Julius Onah spoke about potentially taking on the next chapter in Sam Wilson's story, and also teased what role he'll play in The Avengers going forward:

"All I'll say is, right now my heart and soul is in this film, but I think this is a movie that cements Captain America and Sam Wilson as our new Captain America as a leader of the Avengers going forward. So I'm just really excited about getting this out in the world."

Sam Wilson may not be the most powerful figure in The Avengers, especially considering he is without the super soldier serum, but this doesn't mean he's not most qualified to be the leader of the new team. Steve Rogers may have had the serum coursing through his veins, but he was far from the strongest person on the team and was still an excellent leader throughout the first three phases of the MCU. Sam Wilson has faced off against major threats thus far during his tenure as Falcon, including The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) and Thanos (Josh Brolin), but Brave New World will see him take on the Red Hulk (Harrison Ford), who also happens to be the President, which will undoubtedly provide his most grueling challenge yet.

Who Else Might Be on the New Avengers Team?

Marvel has yet to officially announce who will topline the new Avengers team, but there are some strong candidates. Other than Mackie, who is expected to assume the role of leader, Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) will also likely be a major player in both Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) will also likely return to help the team square off against Doctor Doom and whatever threats await. Kevin Feige himself also confirmed that all members of The Fantastic Four, including Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn), and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) will be part of Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars, and they will likely be major players as well given their history with Doctor Doom. The Avengers wouldn't be the same without Spider-Man (Tom Holland), but his appearance has still yet to be confirmed.

Captain America: Brave New World hits theaters on February 14. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates and coverage and find tickets below for a showtime near you.