After seeing Captain America: Brave New World, I have to say the movie is just fine for the MCU and the current phase we’re in. It’s not the Multiverse Saga or Phase 5 or 6 that I’m referring to. We’re in the phase of Marvel fixing the MCU and improving the quality of its movies and TV shows. Deadpool & Wolverine was the first example of that, but that film benefited from a brand new script and a different kind of market appeal.
Captain America 4 continues Marvel’s work. It’s not as exciting as Deadpool & Wolverine, but it’s certainly more solid than I’d have expected, given what we’ve been hearing about test screenings and reshoots.
I certainly hoped Brave New World would be more than fine for Sam Wilson and Anthony Mackie. Wilson is the MCU’s next Captain America, who will lead the new Avengers team, and Mackie deserves all that and then some. It would have been amazing for Brave New World to have been at least as good as the origin story Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) got in The First Avenger.
That said, I would certainly rewatch Captain America 4, especially for the potential ties to Thunderbolts* and the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars connections.
Also, there’s a key development in Brave New World that makes me want to see Thunderbolts* even more than I already did. The crossover is the 2025 MCU movie I want to see the most, and I say that despite knowing fully well that The Fantastic Four is coming after that.
Before I explain the key Captain America: Brave New World cameo that should help us understand the MCU timeline and the connections between Captain America 4, Thunderbolts*, and Doomsday, you should know that big spoilers might follow below.
The key Captain America 4 cameo
I’ve been waiting to see Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) in Captain America 4 ever since The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. I loved the dynamics between these two characters since they first met, especially in the Disney Plus TV show.
While I didn’t expect to see the Winter Soldier in action until Thunderbolts*, I knew it would be a missed chance for Marvel not to bring Bucky back for Captain America 4. He is a staple of the franchise and one of the reasons the previous films are so good.
Also, I’m the kind of MCU fan who follows all rumors and leaks, and I happen to have read a believable Thunderbolts* plot leak. A detail in it stood out. By the time he has to get back to fighting bad guys in Thunderbolts*, Bucky is a congressman.
The MCU timeline
Captain America 4 confirms that Bucky is indeed running for office. Sebastian Stan appears briefly in the film to show up for his buddy when he needs it most. Sam is in the hospital, watching a team of doctors perform surgery on Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez), who nearly died while acting as Falcon near Celestial Island.
Bucky only has time for a few minutes of pep talk before he needs to fly to a “stupid” fundraiser. He is campaigning, which tells us that either a special election is happening soon in the MCU timeline or he’s preparing for the 2028 mid-terms.
Remember that Captain America 4 starts with Thunderbolt Ross (Harrison Ford) getting elected President. This puts us sometime in November 2026. The action moves then to early 2027, with Ross making the US-Japan deal over adamantium a priority for his first 100 days. Most of the Brave New World action happens within that 100-day window.
This timeline tells us that Thunderbolts* will happen either soon after the events in Brave New World or a little later down the road. Whatever the case, Congressman James Buchanan Barnes will be elected to office before he and the Thunderbolts become the New Avengers.
Thunderbolts or Avengers?
That’s the big surprise the Thunderbolts* title teases. The events in the movie might culminate with the team being called New Avengers. Whether they will choose the name themselves or someone else will call them that is unclear.
Whatever the case, becoming an Avenger again will certainly make sense for Bucky, especially after the events in Brave New World.
During the brief talk with Sam, Bucky learns that President Ross had asked Captain America to reform the Avengers. If that’s an idea the US government is toying with at the time of the chat between Sam and Bucky, then the latter might always look favorably to using the Avengers branding for the Thunderbolts team.
Meanwhile, Sam has decided to create his own Avengers, but he’ll do it on his terms. By the time Captain America makes up his mind, President Ross is no longer in office. And let’s not forget that Ross rescinded his offer in a bout of anger before becoming Red Hulk.
We have no idea who will be on the team other than Falcon, but Sam has every reason to create a new team of Avengers, especially given what happens in the Brave New World credits scene. Samuel Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson) just warned him about the big threat that’s coming in Doomsday. He’ll need a team.
Older leaks already say we’ll get a hilarious meet-cute moment in Doomsday when Captain America’s Avengers will meet the Thunderbolts Avengers. I can’t wait for that chat between Sam and Bucky.
On that note, I can’t help but wonder why Captain America wouldn’t intervene in Thunderbolts*, given what we saw in the Super Bowl trailer. The incoming threat will be so massive Captain America and Falcon will have to find a way to be there.
Hopefully, Marvel will have a good excuse for why only the Thunderbolts can act. Maybe Bucky will explain all that when he informs the other Thunderbolts that they must step up and defend New York alone.
After all, he did have a point in Brave New World when he reminded Sam that no Captain America version would be able to save everyone, whether they’re enhanced or just regular guys. That’s also foreshadowing, telling us superheroes can’t always be present to save the day. Thunderbolts will have to do it.
I am speculating here, of course. It’s all based on unconfirmed Thunderbolts* plot rumors and Avengers rumors. But remember that Thunderbolts* opens in May, which is the slot Marvel usually reserves for big Avengers movies. Thunderbolts* might become just that, an undercover Avengers flick.
