Anthony Mackie reveals that being new Captain America is ‘a huge challenge’

Anthony Mackie might be taking up Captain America’s mantle, but that doesn’t come without its challenges.

After 21 MCU movies — seven of which feature Captain America — you’d be hard pressed to find a Marvel fan whose mind doesn’t automatically jump to Chris Evans whenever Captain America is mentioned. But Evans’ tenure as America’s first Avenger came to an close during Avengers: Endgame, when his character chose to live out his life with Peggy Carter, eventually growing old and passing the torch — or more accurately, shield — onto Sam Wilson.

And Wilson, who has played Falcon for most of Marvel’s first phase of films, is definitely a solid choice for the role. The only other contender for the next Captain America was Bucky Barnes, and it’s clear that the MCU has chosen to go the route of the comics’ White Wolf storyline with his character. So, Falcon will become the new Cap, an exciting prospect, even if the films could have built his character up a bit more before throwing him into one of the franchise’s biggest roles.

But the excitement surrounding the new Captain America doesn’t come without challenges, something Falcon actor Anthony Mackie emphasized during a recent interview with CinemaBlend. In particular, he discussed his concerns about following Evans’ interpretation of the role.

“I love Chris,” Mackie said. “Chris is an amazing Cap. And I feel like, what he’s been able to do with that character, very few people have been able to do in any cinematic universe or span of films. Because he’s played Cap for a lot of movies. To take that over, to be a part of that, the legacy of that, is a huge challenge. It’s something where a lot of people are going to expect me to be Chris Evans in the same suit, but a black dude. And that’s definitely not gonna happen.”

But while it’s true that Mackie has big shoes to fill, a new take on Captain America might be exactly what the MCU needs heading into its next phase. After all, the remaining Avengers need someone to lead them and bring them together, but that someone doesn’t need to be the star-spangled picture of perfection that Evans portrayed. In fact, even Evans’ Captain America became more flawed and fallible as the Avengers films progressed, and Wilson’s journey to becoming the new Cap could offer an opportunity to build on that more nuanced narrative of what a hero is.

In addition to being able to reinvent the character, making him more relatable in the process, Mackie may also get to spend more time in the role. After all, the Disney+ series Falcon and Winter Soldier is likely where Marvel will officially introduce Wilson’s new storyline — meaning he’ll have an entire series to win fans over. (And who knows how many seasons Disney+ will give its new series?)

Mackie appearing at the helm of the new Avengers team will also give MCU fans something they’ve been demanding more and more as of late: a more diverse cast of superheroes. Fans have repeatedly highlighted the need for more female, POC, and LGBTQ+ characters in Marvel films, and having a person of color tackle the role of one of the franchise’s most beloved heroes seems like a promising way to start meeting those needs.

So even if Mackie himself is concerned, we aren’t. True Marvel fans know the two phases of the role can coexist — and that we’ll probably come to love Mackie’s Captain America just as much as Evans’.