Sam Wilson became the MCU's new Captain America in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, though we won't get to see what he can really do until next February's Captain America: Brave New World.
While the movie appears to be going for the same grounded tone as 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Sam will also be pitted against Red Hulk. He's an immensely powerful foe who would give Steve Rogers a run for his money, never mind a regular guy like the former Falcon.
Talking at the Disney APAC Content Showcase in Singapore, Anthony Mackie addressed how the new Captain America will deal with superpowered threats when he has no Super Soldier Serum pumping through his veins.
"Sam’s evolution is simple. He’s still a counsellor. He’s still serving soldiers, but at the same time, now he’s a leader of his community in the country," the actor started. "It’s very different with the serum - you can fight anybody. When you don’t have the serum, you have to be smart and engineer different ways of defeating [enemies]."
"With Sam, him being a counselor, he uses more of his brains than brawn. He uses more of his wit than his fist. He’s more of a friend to everyone."
However, even though Sam has no superpowers, it's his suit that promises to even the odds in Captain America: Brave New World. "It’s a high-tech suit. I went to Wakanda, met with everybody in Wakanda, we had dinner. It was a great time. They threw me a welcome party. It was dope. But when I was leaving, they gave me a suit, right?"
"I put it on. I can kick harder, I can fly faster, and it gives me the ability to be more agile in my skills, so it’s taking all my skills to a completely different level."
While Macke was clearly having fun with those remarks, this is confirmation his suit will enhance the hero's abilities, including his strength.
As for what fans can expect from the latest Captain America adventure, he teased, "If you look at these Marvel movies, they go with different genres. You have the fantasy world, you have the space world, you have the raccoon world. With the Captain America stories, it has always been the realistic, grounding world."
"This movie stays in the line with the original Captain America, of that thrill, of that espionage, of that grounded nature with storytelling and really investing the actual audience into the story," Mackie concluded.
Marvel Studios could have quite easily given Sam the Super Soldier Serum in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier but decided not to, presumably so they can tell some different stories with the new Captain America. It's certainly made his upcoming battle with Red Hulk all the more intriguing, anyway.
Captain America: Brave New World opens in U.S. theaters on February 14, 2025.