Marvel Studios brought Captain America: Brave New World to the San Diego Comic-Con yesterday evening and, once that splashy Hall H panel was over, the cast sat down with Entertainment Weekly to discuss the movie's place in the MCU.
"Brave New World is a great title for this film," the main man himself, Anthony Mackie, teased. "It’s a new beginning, and it’s a foundation on which Marvel will build the universe on now. Not only this character but all the characters that surround him are new building blocks for us to utilize to move on through the universe and into to the future."
The insinuation seems to be that the next Captain America movie will set the tone for the remainder of the Multiverse Saga. This news perhaps shouldn't come as a surprise after Kevin Feige made a point of confirming Sam Wilson will return in the next Avengers movies during the panel.
Giancarlo Esposito was also on hand to chime in and confirmed he'll play the Seth Voelker iteration of Sidewinder in the MCU.
"He’s a complicated guy who didn’t start in a nefarious way," the actor says. "He came to this in a different way, which hopefully will unfold. And I like it because you’ve seen me play certain villainous characters who use their brains, who are great at dictating what to do and how to do it."
"I like Sidewinder because he’s a very physical guy, and he’s got to go toe-to-toe with his physicality, and he knows how to use the tools of his trade. So he’s someone who plays against some of the things in the comic that you think could be true."
We're expecting Esposito's Sidewinder to be a secondary villain behind The Leader and Red Hulk, and legendary actor Harrison Ford appears excited to finally admit he's playing more than just the new U.S. President.
"I did know, and I thought it was a spectacular secret to keep," he admitted. "Unfortunately, the secret’s out of the bag. I had seen other actors in the Marvel universe - well-respected, really good actors - have a really good time. And I said, 'I want me some of that. And I got some.'"
Crediting Mackie with allowing him "to make scenes that had complexity and drama and humor," Ford - who did a pretty wild Red Hulk impression in Hall H - shared more insights into his long-awaited MCU debut in a separate conversation with Variety.
"It took not caring. It took being an idiot for money which I've done before," he said of the motion-capture process. "I don't disparage it, I'm just saying you have to do certain things normally your mother would not want you to do [Laughs]. It was fun. I enjoyed it."
Captain America: Brave New World opens in U.S. theaters on February 14, 2025.