CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD BTS Photos Reveal Original Leader Makeup Design (And It's SO Much Better)

CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD BTS Photos Reveal Original Leader Makeup Design (And It's SO Much Better)

We finally have a proper look at The Leader's original design in Captain America: Brave New World thanks to some new makeup photos, and we're sure you'll agree that this is so much better. Check it out...

By JoshWilding - Apr 24, 2025 03:04 PM EST

Even with Thunderbolts* just days away from arriving in theaters, Captain America: Brave New World's reshoots remain a subject of great interest and debate among fans. There must be a reason Kevin Feige felt the movie needed to be taken back to the drawing board, but what we got was still hit-or-miss.

Among the many alterations was The Leader's appearance. That was altered significantly during additional photography, something confirmed by promo art and an officially released Funko Pop, neither of which looked anything like what ended up on screen.

The comic-accurate large head was swapped out for the sympathy-inducing deformed look we got in Captain America: Brave New World's final cut. While that might have worked better from a storytelling perspective, it failed to do the comics justice and has been widely criticised by fans. 

Thanks to Blue Whale Studios, we finally have a first look at Tim Blake Nelson's pre-reshoot version of The Leader...and it is so much better. 

"The nature of filmmaking asks us to adapt—to respond with creativity rather than react with attachment," the company said on Instagram. 

"We were originally brought on to design and apply the practical makeup for The Leader on the incomparable Tim Blake Nelson in Captain America: Brave New World. As often happens in film, the story evolved, and during reshoots, the creative direction shifted. Our version was ultimately not used in the final cut."

"Still, we remain incredibly proud of the work we created," they add. "Drawing inspiration from the original comic book art, we developed a look that felt both grounded and iconic—true to the source while achieving a refined, natural realism. Technically, we were thrilled with how lightweight and comfortable the final makeup was for the actor—an achievement made possible by the dedication of an extraordinary team."

"Even when the work doesn’t reach the screen, its impact lives on—in the process, the passion, and the people behind it. We’re honored to have played a part in this chapter of the Marvel legacy," Blue Whale Studios concluded.

It's a tremendous shame that this take on The Leader never made it to the big screen. Yes, the original Samuel Sterns was more of a mastermind than a victim, but the brain-like skull, glowing eye, and zombie-like face were arguably the worst possible direction to take the villain in, regardless of how much his arc changed.

Check out this alternate take on Captain America: Brave New World's Leader in the Instagram gallery below. 

In Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) – who now wields the shield of Captain America after events in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier – meets with newly elected U.S. president Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford) and soon finds himself in the middle of an international incident. In a race against time, Sam must discover the reason behind a nefarious global plot before the true mastermind has the entire world seeing red.

Captain America: Brave New World is now available on Digital and arrives on Blu-ray starting May 13.

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LordMushu
LordMushu - 4/24/2025, 3:21 PM
Dear god is that so much better. Like WTH lol
IAmAHoot
IAmAHoot - 4/24/2025, 4:18 PM
@LordMushu - I mean, to be fair, it may have looked awful in motion overall.
UncleHarm1
UncleHarm1 - 4/24/2025, 6:20 PM
@IAmAHoot - Maybe it jiggled when he moved. Actually now I wish they went with this design even more
harryba11zack
harryba11zack - 4/24/2025, 3:22 PM
you wanna spoil this movie to?
RacialPowerman
RacialPowerman - 4/24/2025, 6:16 PM
@harryba11zack - Bad guys lose,good guys win,flimsy plot in the middle....there's ya spoiler
narrow290
narrow290 - 4/24/2025, 3:23 PM
I didn't hate the Leader in Cap 4. love the actor and I hope he gets another shot at the role
BigGrayGolem
BigGrayGolem - 4/24/2025, 6:40 PM
@narrow290 - Agree with this. He's a great actor, wholly unappreciated, had some great lines in CAP 4 but not much else.
A2ron
A2ron - 4/24/2025, 11:37 PM
@narrow290 - with this makeup.
Spike101
Spike101 - 4/24/2025, 3:25 PM
Why oh why didn’t they use this version. This alone could have turned this movie around.
Superheromoviefan
Superheromoviefan - 4/24/2025, 3:27 PM
my guess they wanted the body horror from Al Ewing's hulk
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soberchimera
soberchimera - 4/24/2025, 11:12 PM
@Superheromoviefan - More like the popcorn head from Peter David’s run.
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Wahhvacado
Wahhvacado - 4/24/2025, 3:29 PM
Significantly better but it wouldn't have saved how bad the character was
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 4/24/2025, 3:35 PM
I don’t quite understand besides the lack of elongated cranium what exactly was so bad about the new look?.

I liked the almost zombie like deformed visage since imo it worked in further justifying Sterns anger & desire for revenge against Ross even moreso for making him like this after repeated exposures to Gamma Radiation.

Yes , it’s not classically “comic accurate” but the Leaders look even in the comics has evolved at various points aswell.

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That does look pretty good though so kudos to them but does make me wonder what caused the shift in story and thus creative direction for the look aswell?

The only thing I can think of is perhaps it may not have been a revenge mission initially but they turned it into that to further emphasize Ross’s arc of change in the film.

Anyway , I thought Sterns was alright in BNW but I do hope we see him again in the future!!.
StSteven
StSteven - 4/24/2025, 7:09 PM
@TheVisionary25 - Yeah, gotta agree with you there. I think the change was because they didn't want Sterns to literally be a mustache twirling evil genius (whom the audience probably wouldn't have a lot of sympathy for), but to make him more sympathetic, thereby making Ross even worse by comparison, which, as you said, makes Ross's story arc more compelling.

As far as Sterns' future, there's nothing to say that he won't have evolved into a more comic accurate version of himself by the next time we see him. They didn't explicitly say in the movie (as far as I recall) when he stopped getting the gamma radiation that Ross was hitting him with, but if it was recent to when we first saw him he might very well continue to mutate while he's sitting in the Raft. Plus, once he (presumably) escapes, he may voluntarily continue to irradiate himself in an effort to become even smarter. AND, if they actually eventually do that rumored WWH movie, that could be how he eventually becomes the main antagonist of that by being a super genius creating an army of Hulks, while twirling his mustache (just because he was clean shaven in "CA:BNW" doesn't mean he can't actually grow hair, facial or otherwise).

My point is that I kinda think that being as they didn't kill him off, this is a starting point for his character, so let's see what he's like the next time we see him. Plus, remember, Hasbro has toys to sell, damn it! 😉
THEKENDOMAN
THEKENDOMAN - 4/24/2025, 3:36 PM
How on earth did they [frick] this up?

I mean, how could they take one of the Hulk's most formidable enemies and not give him close-to-comic-book design?

The [frick]ing truth is, they just don’t [frick]ing care about the Hulk at all. We're lucky if we even get to see Red Hulk for five minutes!

They turned the strongest superhero into a [frick]ing joke. They couldn't even give him a decent revenge fight with Thanos; instead, they made him look like a [frick]ing bitch nerd.

Now we know how they managed to [frick] this up.

For [frick]s sake!
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/24/2025, 3:40 PM
@THEKENDOMAN - Blame Paramount. Marvel's not going to devote a lot of screen time to develop a character that they can't use in a solo feature.
THEKENDOMAN
THEKENDOMAN - 4/24/2025, 3:44 PM
@Clintthahamster - Paramount?? Do you mean Universal?
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/24/2025, 3:55 PM
@THEKENDOMAN - Probably! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/24/2025, 5:44 PM
@Clintthahamster - Universal isn't the one that skipped over his entire character journey to joining the Hulk and Banner identities in Endgame, and it didn't choose to not delve into the trauma of the character and it didn't choose to make him more of a joke and it didn't choose to use his villains, randomly, in a Cap movie.

What would I blame them for, not making a Hulk movie or something else.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/24/2025, 7:33 PM
@dagenspear - You're right, it's probably some sort plot against Hulks.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/24/2025, 9:03 PM
@Clintthahamster - I'm more thinking apathy to tell a real character based story. Assuming your serious and not joking here.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/24/2025, 9:48 PM
@dagenspear - I am joking. They don't have proper film rights to make solo films about the character, so they have changed the character to better fit as a guest star in films led by other characters. They're just hasn't been an opportunity to tell a complex story about the Hulk, or a deeply explore banners character or motivation.

That said, while I don't agree that they have mishandled the character of the Hulk, I do agree that it was a weird move to pack Cap 4 with Hulk villains. Not sure why they did that, but it sure as shit didn't work.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/25/2025, 5:31 AM
@Clintthahamster - I'd disagree that there hasn't been that opportunity to tell that story. I don't think they had to change the character either. Why is the character not mishandled.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/25/2025, 6:19 AM
@dagenspear - It's a matter of opinion. I like the way Hulk has been handled in the films, you don't.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/25/2025, 11:25 PM
@Clintthahamster - What's to like, when he doesn't get a character arc or story post Ragnarok, and even Infinity War I think is half baked.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/26/2025, 12:27 PM
@dagenspear - IDK, the story of a man overcoming his demons and living a good life despite the monster within. That's pretty cool.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/26/2025, 1:37 PM
@Clintthahamster - But I think that's not his story. More his story is existing after that story happened. As is, what were his demons, because they never developed them to me.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/26/2025, 7:27 PM
@dagenspear - Well, he had that giant hulk thing he'd transform into, a literal manifestation of unbridled rage. I guess that is what I was referring to. I join you in hoping that one day Marvel is able to get the rights back from Universal and make a proper Hulk movie, but under the circumstances I can't really blame them for handling things the way they have. You disagree. That's fine.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/26/2025, 8:04 PM
@Clintthahamster - But where is the story where he overcame them.

In Endgame he could've gone through an arc where he reconciled the 2 halves of his identity. I do think they're responsible for skipping over that big character moment.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/27/2025, 8:13 AM
@dagenspear - I hear that you wish that had played out onscreen. But they can't show everything that happens to every character on screen. Comics have thousands of pages across hundreds of issues to tell complex, layered stories. Movies don't have that luxury. They have a finite number of hours per year to tell dozens of interconnected stories. Some stuff is going to be left out, some stuff is going to be left unsaid. It's the nature of the medium.

There are a lot of stories from the five year "blipped" that I would love to see told, but it looks like that is not Marvel's priority. C'est la vie.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/27/2025, 1:00 PM
@Clintthahamster - They have the time, I think, to tell it in the movie. They have the screen time, they burn it on other things, to me, things they didn't need for the stories of the characters.
ClintthaManster
ClintthaManster - 4/27/2025, 3:40 PM
@dagenspear - I hear you loud and clear. I don't feel like we've missed anything, you do. To each his own. No need to keep circling around each other.
BackwardGalaxy
BackwardGalaxy - 4/24/2025, 3:50 PM
I like both.
dracula
dracula - 4/24/2025, 3:53 PM
Think they could have went somewhere in the middle

Neither os what his head was looking like when we saw the blood get in back in incredible hulk
dagenspear
dagenspear - 4/24/2025, 5:45 PM
@dracula - I think similarly.
MisterBones
MisterBones - 4/24/2025, 3:55 PM
WTF. Marvel is moronic
Oberlin4Prez
Oberlin4Prez - 4/24/2025, 4:00 PM
Just further proof this movie was reshot to death and the reported budget was yet another studio lie forwarded by the schills that run this site.
TheTyrantVirus
TheTyrantVirus - 4/24/2025, 4:02 PM
I'm sorry, but that looks completely terrible. Maybe more accurate to the comics, but I can see why they didn't go with it. I didn't love the final product in the movie, either, but I prefer it to whatever THIS is. (To be completely transparent, I don't love Leader as a character in general, so I have no "skin in the game", so to speak.)

While I thought Cap 4 was good, if middle-tier MCU, it did give me one of the funniest in-theater moments I've had in a long time. So, the theater is quiet as Leader is about to reveal himself, and when he steps into the light, a kid says "Ewwwwwwwwww!" loudly (but not in a fake trying to be funny way, it was a genuine reaction). I don't think that would have been reaction if the original version had been what was revealed - it would have been laughter at how stupid it looked.
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