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Julius Onah (“Luce,” “The Cloverfield Paradox”) is directing the film, which finds the new Captain America, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), fighting the good fight without the support of the Avengers, who disbanded in the wake of “Endgame.” Also returning from “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” are Carl Lumbly as Isaiah Bradley, a.k.a. the first Black supersoldier (who told Sam in “FAWS” that the U.S. would never accept a Black Captain America), and Danny Ramirez as Joaquín Torres, who inherits the Falcon moniker from Sam. Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”) joins the cast as Ruth Bat-Seraph, a.k.a. Sabra. In the comics, Sabra is a mutant who works as an agent of the Israeli Mossad, but a spokesperson for Marvel tells Variety that the filmmakers are taking “a new approach” with the character.
“FAWS” head writer Malcolm Spellman and staff writer Dalan Musson wrote the screenplay, with Matthew Orton (“Moon Knight”) writing material for additional photography planned for 2024.
The film was originally subtitled “New World Order,” but Disney announced it was changed to “Brave New World” in June 2023. While main photography concluded before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Disney pushed the film from a May 2024 release to Feb. 2025.
MCU Tie-In: Tim Blake Nelson will play Samuel Sterns, a.k.a. The Leader, a character that dates all the way back to 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk.” In that film, Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) forces Samuel to use blood samples from Bruce Banner (played by Edward Norton) to transform Emil into the Abomination. In the aftermath, some of Bruce’s blood lands on an open wound on Emils skull, transforming him into The Leader. Sixteen years later, we’ll finally see what happened next for Samuel.
Another character from “The Incredible Hulk,” Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, will appear as the president of the United States in “Brave New World” — played by Harrison Ford (!), replacing the late actor William Hurt, who originated the role and played it several times, most recently in “Black Widow.”
The Leader and Ross may not be the only MCU legacy characters to return for “Brave New World,” especially since the anti-hero team-up movie “Thunderbolts” is set to follow later in 2025, which features disgraced former Captain America John Walker (Wyatt Russell), a.k.a. U.S. Agent, and the shadowy operative Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) — two characters first introduced on “FAWS.” And then there’s the post-credits tease for “FAWS,” in which Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) revealed herself to be the nefarious Power Broker just as she’s pardoned and brought back into the U.S. government — what’s to become of her?
