The Falcon and the Winter Soldier showcased a mind-blowing finale capped off by the heroic transformation of Sam Wilson into the MCU's new Captain America. Throughout the season, it was clear that the main selling point of the Disney+ series was the dynamic of Anthony Mackie's Sam and Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes, and based on fan reactions, the show delivered on that front.
Sam and Bucky had an interesting MCU journey. The titular pair started out as enemies during 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier before ultimately becoming allies in Captain America: Civil War and the last two Avengers films.
The common denominator between the two heroes was Chris Evans' Steve Rogers, but the fact that he was gone during The Falcon and the Winter Soldier presented a complicated situation for the duo.
Still, the show managed to feature the evolution of the friendship between Sam and Bucky, leading to a captivating resolution. The status of the pair's working relationship in the MCU is unknown, but a new comment from one of the stars may offer hope that the partnership will continue in future projects.
ANTHONY MACKIE WANTS MORE TEAM-UPS WITH SEBASTIAN STAN
Anthony Mackie, who plays the MCU's Sam Wilson, recently sat down with Entertainment Tonight to talk about the reported development of Captain America 4.
The future of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is currently unknown, but Mackie remains hopeful that his next MCU outing will still feature Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes. Mackie mentioned how "it's obvious that we [he and Stan] work extremely well together:"
"Sebastian is one of my dear friends. I think it's obvious that we work extremely well together. So, the idea of us being a duo, it ain't that bad of a thing. You get the glaze and you get the chocolate glaze, you know? Everybody gets the donut they want. So, I think we'll all be happy with that."
Switching back to the reportedly in development Captain America 4, the actor insisted that he still doesn't know what's going on about the potential Marvel sequel:
“Nobody called. I'm like, 'My phone works, dawg! I pay my bill every month!' So, I don't know what's going on.”
Despite that, the veteran MCU actor still admitted that Marvel Studios “always have some kind of plan,” and his next move is to “just wait for the phone call from Kevin [Feige] and Nate [Moore]:”
“They always have some kind of plan. But there's, like, 30 million projects in production right now, so I just wait for the phone call from Kevin [Feige] and Nate [Moore] to tell me what I'm doing.”
When the interviewer pressed on whether he is really aware of Captain America 4, Mackie hilariously quipped:
"You trying to get me fired? I mean, literally it's been three days and you're trying to get me fired. Three days!"
CAPTAIN AMERICA AND THE WINTER SOLDIER
Mackie's playful admission that he still doesn't have an idea if Marvel Studios is developing a fourth Captain America film leans toward the secrecy of the studio, and it seems that this is only his way of avoiding questions about the matter to save himself from the so-called Marvel snipers.
On a separate note, Anthony Mackie's hopeful comment about reuniting with Sebastian Stan in a future Marvel project bodes well for the MCU.
The pair's chemistry is one of the strongest assets of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and it's only fitting that Marvel Studios will give them another chance to showcase their bond in either a second season or in the fourth Captain America movie.
On a plot level, it makes narrative sense for the MCU to feature Bucky as Sam's tag-team partner not just in Captain America 4 but also in other films. Captain America and Bucky are characters that are forever intertwined, and Marvel would be giving the heroes justice by placing them together in any project.
From entertaining banter to thrilling action sequences, Sam and Bucky clearly showed that they have what it takes to lead their own series. In a way, this presents a huge amount of potential for Captain America 4.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier provided a compelling foundation for Sam and Bucky's friendship, and it will be interesting to see how it will evolve in Phase 4 and beyond.
All episodes of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier are now streaming on Disney+.
