'Captain America 4' Officially Confirmed, Anthony Mackie To Star

Captain America has officially received his wings.

After much anticipation and rumors, we now have confirmation that Anthony Mackie will take over as the iconic superhero for Captain America 4, the follow-up to the Chris Evans Marvel trilogy and the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Of course, Evans famously retired from the role following Avengers: Endgame, as Steve Rogers sailed into the sunset after receiving his happy ending with Peggy Carter in the past and handed over his shield to a well-deserving Sam Wilson in the present. Needless to say, this is a significant step forward for the Marvel Cinematic Univesre and an all-around (if somewhat overdue) victory for representation in the popular superhero franchise.

According to Deadline, Mackie has officially closed his deal and signed on for this new role. He will be graduating from his supporting role throughout the MCU, which started with 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, to leading a Captain America movie of his very own. The Deadline report also raises the question of whether Sebastian Stan will also be returning as Bucky Barnes after co-starring with Mackie throughout The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, though there is no confirmation of that either way just yet. Viewers will remember that the Disney+ limited series ended with the updated title card of Captain America and the Winter Soldier, strongly hinting at this new direction.

Written by The Falcon and the Winter Soldier writers Malcolm Spellman and Dalan Musson, the in-development sequel does not yet have a director attached. It makes a lot of sense to keep at least part of the creative team intact for this new movie, as the series received praise for diving into questions of legacy and the worthiness of a Black man taking on the mantle for such an iconic character that comes with ties to patriotism and nationalism. However, there were also criticisms of Marvel not quite "understanding the assignment," mostly revolving around the villainous Flag Smashers, as well as the rehabilitation and redemption of Wyatt Russell's John Walker.

Notably, the report also makes mention of the fact that this isn't believed to be the same project that Chris Evans has been rumored to be attached to as his mysterious return to the MCU, which we brought to you previously. We'll bring you more updates on this as they come in.