Is There Anything More American Than Racist Arguments About Whether Sam Wilson Is Captain America?
Recent news about the upcoming Captain America 4 seems to have set off a peculiar case of brain worms. It all appears to have started with a tweet from The Hollywood Reporter, and as we all know, nothing good ever starts with a tweet. THR is a reputable site when it comes to movie news, and the actual news (that Julis Onah is set to direct) is another example of their good reporting. But the tweet sharing said news with the world seemed confused as to what Anthony Mackie’s role might be in the movie. Mackie plays Sam Wilson, who for most of his MCU life has been Falcon, Cap’s de facto sidekick. But he’s now Captain America. We have had this explicitly explained to us in both a movie and a television series starring Mackie. And yet still there are worms in our brain.
It feels beneath all of us for me to have to explain that the man they have been calling Captain America for three years is, in fact, Captain America, but for the avoidance of doubt, let’s refresh. Wilson becomes Captain America at the end of Endgame. Steve zaps off to have the life of peace he always wanted with Peggy, and returns as a very Joe Biden-looking old man to give Sam his shield. Sam says it feels like “someone else’s,” and Steve tells him “it isn’t”. Even Bucky, the only other character with a major connection to Steve, is there to nod in his agreement and support that Sam be the one to take up the mantle.
Related: We Need To Stop Letting Ourselves Be Queerbaited By The MCU
After this, we had Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney+. I know the title seems to undermine my point, but you’ll soon realise it does not. Sam, a Black man being asked to become a symbol for righteous justice in America, is uncomfortable with the realities of the position.
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