Well, this was as inevitable as Thanos. After a month into its theatrical run, the end is now in sight when it comes to Captain America: Brave New World‘s total box office gross, and all the signs are pointing to the Anthony Mackie vehicle avoiding its potential to be a full-blown flop, but running head first into its fate as one of the lowest-performing MCU movies of the lot. u374s

Following its fourth weekend in theaters, Brave New World found some extra cents in between the seats in order to bring its domestic gross up to $176.5 million and its international take to $192 million. All together, then, that means the director Julius Onah-directed effort has an overall box office haul of $370.8 million (via Box Office Mojo). Based on these latest figures, the current predictions for its ultimate box office haul puts it at somewhere between $405 million to $440 million.

That number should come as something of a relief to Marvel, as it’s been reported that Brave New World needed to cross the $400 million mark to break even. So while the movie — which cost a slim $180 million to make, but which probably cost that much again to reshoot and promote — likely won’t make much of a profit, at least it shouldn’t go down as a net loss for the studio. That said, there’s no escaping that Captain America 4 is destined to become one of the MCU’s least financially successful films.

Captain America: Brave New World brings the franchise full circle as it nears end of box office run 4n6oa

With its current box office gross, Brave New World has now officially reached the overall total made by its great-granddad across its entire run. 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger kicked off the Sentinel of Liberty’s superhero franchise with perhaps less fanfare than you would expect, grossing just $370.6 million by the end of its theatrical release. So the good news for Brave New World is that it won’t hold the (dis)honor of being the lowest-earning Cap movie of the lot.

Unfortunately, it’s still likely doomed to a place in the top 10 weakest MCU films when ranked by box office — although considering the current no. 10 is Iron Man, that probably sounds worse than it is. If Brave New World concludes its time in theaters closer to $404 million then it could become the sixth lowest-grossing, slotting in just behind (or in front of, depending on your point of view) Eternals, with its $402 million haul. Then again, if it pulls off something more like $440 million then it will file between Shang-Chi ($432 million) and Thor ($449 million).

In other words, Brave New World‘s box office numbers are nowhere near as embarrassing as the Multiverse Saga’s biggest bomb — The Marvels, with its $205 million gross — and instead it’s nestled among many of the old-school MCU favorites of Phase One. For a movie that’s a backdoor sequel to The Incredible Hulk, that seems very appropriate.

What a strange start to Marvel’s 2025 it’s been. Focusing on its live-action releases for a minute (although I’m going to need you to stop sleeping on Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man), the MCU got its new year off on the wrong foot with Captain America: Brave New World, which is currently the third lowest-rated Marvel film on Rotten Tomatoes. Luckily, Daredevil: Born Again has come to bounce the franchise back again. And much more besides.

At the time of writing, following the arrival of its two-part premiere, Born Again sports a Tomatometer score of 82%, almost the mirror opposite of Brave New World’s 48%. While that’s a tad lower than the Netflix series’ 92%, the good news is that the audience score, or popcornmeter, is even higher — at 96%, over the old show’s 89%. In other words, this is shaping up to be exactly the victory Marvel was dreaming it would be. And it’s proving that all the doom-mongering after Captain America 4 is based on more disinformation than Wilson Fisk’s mayoral campaign.

Brave New World isn’t Marvel’s reset button, Born Again is r1d37

After an extremely rocky 2023, much was made of Marvel using the off-period of the Hollywood strikes to rethink the creative direction it was going down. The result was reimagined movies such as Avengers: Doomsday and a newfound commitment to ongoing TV shows, like Born Again (a second season is shooting now, with a third expected to follow). All this re-strategizing was supposed to put the murkiness of the Multiverse Saga’s past behind us, but then Brave New World had people saying Marvel’s reboot had failed mid-update.

The reality, though, is that Cap 4 is a product of the before times. Although it did undergo heavy reshoots in 2024, clearly there was no fixing a film that had been perhaps fundamentally ill-conceived from the off (a covert Incredible Hulk sequel in 2025? Are we nostalgic for Ed Norton’s Hulk now?). In contrast, Born Again is the poster child of the All-New, All-Different Multiverse Saga. As we probably all know by now, Marvel brought in a fresh creative team after the strikes to take the show in a completely different direction.

It’s still early days for the DD revival, but all signs are currently pointing to Marvel’s decision being a wholesale win, which bodes well for everything else that’s come out of this post-strikes surge of creativity — like May’s Thunderbolts*, July’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and the surprisingly stacked slate the studio has in store for 2026. All in all, Cap 4 can be considered a stumble on the road to redemption, not another veer down a dark path. The new, improved (?) Daredevil makes clear that Brave New World was not the franchise’s brave new start after all and it’s taken until now for the MCU to be truly born again.

Captain America: Brave New World just enjoyed its third weekend at the box office, and one way of looking at it is that it retained its position in the top spot yet again. The other way of looking at it, however, is that this slacker of a superhero blockbuster isn’t quite hitting the numbers it should be for such an uncompetitive time of year. But, hey, at least it has now officially earned more than a certain infamous MCU movie.

All in all, this Oscars weekend made for a lackluster period at the box office, despite it being a time when you’d think cinema-goers would be full of movie-mania. Going by how middling Brave New World fared, though, it seems most film lovers skipped a trek to their local theaters to stay at home and finally rent Anora or The Substance before the Academy Awards started. Whatever the reason, the less than impressive numbers mean Captain America 4‘s fate still hangs in the balance.

Brave New World has officially grossed more than its biggest inspiration, but it still might not break even 4h5f4v

Across its third weekend, Brave New World brought home $15 million more at the domestic box office. As per Variety, that means the Anthony Mackie vehicle has pulled in $163.7 million from North America in total. And, thanks to its slightly more robust international performance, that brings its current global gross to a nifty $341.8 million. In the grand scheme of things, that’s nothing to sniff at, but seeing as its biggest rivals right now are all niche releases — e.g. survival thriller Last Breath and horror-comedy The Monkey — you might expect the MCU’s latest crowd-pleaser to be, well, pleasing bigger crowds.

On the plus side, just before the weekend broke, Brave New World at last crossed a somewhat significant milestone. At the very least, the movie has definitely made more money than its most direct predecessor in the MCU — not, not Captain America: Civil War but 2008’s The Incredible Hulk. The Julius Onah-directed offering — which brings back three key characters and two legacy cast- from the oft-forgotten Edward Norton caper — is well past the $265 million brought in by Hulk across its entire theatrical run at this point. That is some kind of vindication for Marvel’s curious decision to make a shadow sequel to one of its most middling movies 17 years later.

With another slump in ticket sales inevitable as we head into its fourth week, the big question now is: can Brave New World manage to make enough to cross the all-important $400 million mark, which analysts have determined is how much it needs to dump in the bank in order to break even for Marvel and Disney. If it fails, the film will become the latest slice of the Multiverse Saga pie to be declared a box office bomb, after the likes of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels. In other words, Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four, the future of the MCU rests in your hands.

With awful reviews and a box office haul that’s hemorrhaged sales since its opening weekend, Captain America: Brave New World tragically didn’t get much right, but maybe it’s easier to appreciate if we think of it as a Harrison Ford movie rather than a Marvel movie. It’s certainly keen to play with Ford’s long Hollywood history, with his turn as President Ross consciously evoking the last time he played a POTUS, in 1990s classic Air Force One.

Sure enough, as it struggles to break even financially, Brave New World is unlikely to shake any feathers when it comes to MCU milestones (but at least it’s not bottoming out like The Marvels either). On the other hand, thanks to his involvement in this middling Marvel offering, Ford has just earned himself a significant boost that allows him to sail past Johnny Depp when it comes to the highest-grossing actors of all time.

Harrison Ford is now a higher-grossing actor than Johnny Depp thanks to Brave New World 5z1a4

If we ever wondered why a venerable movie star like Harrison Ford would ever agree to don a onesie studded with golf balls and make grunting noises all day long in order to play Red Hulk, the beloved curmudgeon made that abundantly clear on the film’s press tour. When asked by Variety, he itted he was more than willing to be “an idiot for money, which I’ve done before.” Well, that attitude has served him well as Brave New World has ended up doing Ford a big solid.

According to TheNumbers‘ league table of the highest-grossing actors in film history, Ford is all set to move up a ranking thanks to Cap 4‘s ongoing earnings. As of the time of writing, the 82-year-old icon is just $11 million behind Johnny Depp, which means he’ll soon switch places with the Pirates of the Caribbean alum as Brave New World will undoubtedly make more than that across its third weekend at the box office.

So where will this place Ford in the rankings? Surprisingly low, in actual fact. Following this weekend, Ford will rise to 44th position on the chart, putting Depp into 45th, based on a total career gross of $10,852,899,702. Unsurprisingly, circa 99% of the actors above Ford in the ranking hail from the MCU as well, with many performers of considerably less fame outflanking him due to their multiple Marvel appearances — e.g. Benedict Wong (38) and Paul Bettany (20). The ultimate proof that a Marvel gig is the way to bump up your career gross? In the number one position, making him the highest-grossing actor of all time, is none other than MCU cameo mainstay Stan Lee. Excelsior!

Clearly, Depp needs to get himself a role in the Marvel multiverse if he hopes to climb back over Ford in the rankings. Such a development isn’t even necessarily as impossible as it once seemed, given that the Fantastic Beasts veteran is set to make a major Hollywood comeback in action-thriller Day Drinker alongside Penelope Cruz. Meanwhile, if Ford wants to make it into the top 40 he may want to bug Kevin Feige into slipping Red Hulk into Avengers: Doomsday. With any luck, the man’s not done being an idiot for money yet.

Anthony Mackie might have stepped on some toes in a recent interview where he threw some shade at his forever bro Sebastian Stan. The Captain America: Brave New World actor named Stan as his least talented scene partner, and we aren’t having it. But anyone familiar with Hollywood’s favorite bromance won’t help but laugh, especially when you hear Mackie’s reasons. 

Anthony Mackie takes a shot at Sebastian Stan 60c3g

Just like Sam and Bucky in the MCU, Mackie and Stan love to tease each other, so when Mackie was asked a particular question during the Brave New World press tour, his answer didn’t surprise anyone. 

Mackie and his Brave New World co-star, Danny Ramirez, stopped by the set of First We Feat, for an episode of Hot Ones Versus. The pair had to ask each other questions, and if the other couldn’t answer, they had to eat a spicy wing. Mackie already had Ramirez on the ropes, after fearlessly answering any questions lobbed at him, no matter who he offended, but fans really thought Ramirez had him on this one. The question read, “Rank these Captain America scene partners from most to least talented: Chris Evans, Sebastian Stan, Danny Ramirez.” 

Unfortunately for Ramirez, Mackie was willing to welcome the smoke, and emphatically answered. “Chris Evans, Danny Ramirez, **** Sebastian Stan,” he said. Knowing how much the two love to tease each other, it wasn’t a surprise that Mackie would put Stan at the bottom of that list, just for laughs. He also went on to list his hilarious reasons for putting Stan at the bottom. “He got a Golden Globe, an Oscar nomination… he got a new girlfriend– he’s got everything.”

Keeping the bromance alive 37d5q

If you’re not familiar with Mackie and Stan’s bromance, or “Stacky,” as their fans have dubbed them, his ranking of Stan at the bottom might seem mean. But, it is just a rollover of their decade-plus-long bromance, from when they first shared the screen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. While their characters had some funny on-screen moments during the movie, it was the actor’s chemistry during the press tour and on red carpets that solidified the pairing. 

They have countless inside jokes, memes, and running gags, such as Mackie’s love for Stans’s couch, Stan teasing Mackie over not being able to use social media, and Mackie fawning over Stan’s “steel blue eyes” that “let you know where home is.” 

Despite constantly poking fun at each other, their friendship is undeniably full of love and . Both actors have appeared on each other’s projects’ red carpets and shown nothing but pride for the other over their achievements. Mackie isn’t even as bitter at Stan’s Oscar nom, as he suggested in the Hot Ones Versus. After all, during another interview with On Demand Entertainment, he proudly raved about how he had a huge party planned to celebrate the nomination, regardless of whether Stan won or not. 

This is a bromance that we’ll never tire of, and we’ll be eagerly waiting for the next time Mackie crashes one of Stan’s red carpet interviews. 

Marvel might not be feeling quite so brave about Captain America: Brave New World right now after its second weekend in theaters suffered from a precipitous drop in ticket sales. And considering the latest humiliation heaped about the beleaguered would-be blockbuster, it’s no mystery what’s caused the box office to bottom out so quickly.

The numbers are in (via Variety) and Brave New World officially brought in just $28 million across this past weekend, which marks a significant drop from the $100 million haul it earned across the extended Valentine’s Day/President’s Day weekend that served as its grand opening. That means the film has suffered a 68% plummet from one weekend to the next. That’s despite not encountering any stiff competition — #2 at the domestic box office was horror-comedy The Monkey, which swung its way to $14.2 million.

That may sound disastrous but, believe it or not, that’s not the biggest drop-off an MCU stinker has suffered from in recent years. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania lost a full 70% of ticket sales in its second weekend when it opened back in Feb. 2023, blowing a gasket in the MCU machine that it hasn’t really recovered from since. Not that such a drop was even uncommon before this. Both Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Thor: Love and Thunder likewise suffered from 67% drop-offs back in 2022.

That said, those latter two movies had heftier opening weekends to begin with — Love and Thunder‘s $760 million worldwide total is likely beyond Brave New World, and Doctor Strange 2‘s $956 million cume certainly is. Cap 4‘s global gross so far is around $289 million, but numbers are only going to decrease from here on out. With any luck, though, it should still cross the $400 million mark it reportedly needs to break even.

It’s no surprise that Brave New World has ended up facing a box office implosion that’s almost as bad as Quantumania and worse than Love and Thunder and Multiverse of Madness. The poor reviews it faced upon release were always likely to infect its performance as poor word of mouth got around. That said, it did initially seem like fans were going to be kinder to it than critics… and then its CinemaScore rating came out. The Anthony Mackie vehicle has been awarded a B Minus on the platform. While that might not sound too bad, thanks to CinemaScore’s typically very generous grading system that makes it the lowest-graded MCU movie to date.

At this point, Brave New World may be something of a lost cause, with Marvel now likely pinning its hopes on this May’s Thunderbolts* instead (although this July’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps is definitely the studio’s best shot at recapturing the glory of last year’s Deadpool & Wolverine). On the plus side, at least it has already ed what mega-bomb The Marvels managed in its entire theatrical run, despite facing an even more brutal Rotten Tomatoes score.

Like Thanos, a steep second-weekend slip at the box office was inevitable for Brave New World, although even Thanos would’ve been kinder — at least he only obliterates 50%, not 68%.

The negative response to Captain America: Brave New World has begged broader questions about Marvel exec Kevin Feige, especially amid criticism from Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld. 

In case you missed it, Brave New World premiered earlier this month to decidedly tepid reviews and an even more lackluster box office haul. The film, which sees Anthony Mackie take the Captain America mantle from Chris Evans, has made history (in a bad way), earning the lowest CinemaScore of any movie within the MCU. Yep, the B minus rating, though not particularly low, is nonetheless lowest earned by any film in the franchise.

Heck, even the almost universally loathed Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, The Marvels and Eternals managed to score a B plus on the site, which measures a film’s appeal based on early reactions. On the opposing end of the spectrum, Brave New World’s rating pales in comparison to titles like The Avengers, Black Panther, and Avengers: Endgame, which each earned a respectable A plus CinemaScore. 

The disastrous score has placed increased scrutiny on Marvel boss Kevin Feige, who has been called out by Liefeld in a recent episode of the Deadpool creator’s Robservations podcast. The comic book writer, who created both Deadpool and Cable, revealed that he is severing ties with Marvel after more than three decades in its orbit, citing multiple slights levelled against him by Feige. 

Dogpool makes a red carpet appearance at the #DeadpoolandWolverine New York premiere. pic.twitter.com/3nifpRLQvZ

— Variety (@Variety) July 22, 2024

One such moment was at the July premiere of Deadpool & Wolverine in New York, where Liefeld claims he was ignored by Feige on the red carpet, and that he and his family were not invited to the after party. Liefeld also claimed that photos of himself and the Deadpool & Wolverine team were deleted, and that his request to receive a special credit at the beginning of the film was denied by Feige and other Marvel bosses. “It was meant to embarrass, diminish, defeat me,” Liefeld said of the apparent in-fighting led by Feige.

In a follow-up interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Liefeld declared that “Marvel’s treatment of creators has never been their strength,” adding that “without the worlds, the characters and the concepts that we create… there are no films to shoot.” Liefeld then doubled-down on his thoughts of Feige while commenting on Brave New World’s box office slump over the weekend, which saw an 82.4% drop from the film’s domestic opening day. “Get Feige off the mound,” Liefeld wrote in response to the news. “He’s spent.” 

Get Feige off the mound. He’s spent. https://t.co/5EimiviiBt

— robliefeld (@robertliefeld) February 22, 2025

That message was met with a mixed reaction from fans, but it’s not the first time Liefeld has taken aim at a major comic book studio. In 2023, the Deadpool creator set his sights on DC, saying the studio lost its way after the release of Man Of Steel and had “skip[ped] steps trying to exceed Marvel.” Given the Deadpool franchise’s penchant for fourth-wall breaking, we wouldn’t be surprised if, in the next entry, a jab was hurled Liefeld’s way as a result of his comments.  

The MCU has always gone to gargantuan lengths to make its movies palatable to as many audience as possible. Sometimes, that means last-minute changes that frustrate just about everyone on set.

While rumors swirled that, on Captain America: Brave New World, Harrison Ford mirrored his on-screen Red Hulk performance a little too closely even when the cameras weren’t rolling — earning him the label of a “curmudgeon” — the film’s director is now stepping forward to dispute those claims.

Speaking to Vulture, an anonymous crew member alleged that most people on set felt the film was doomed from the start. While their primary frustration was with constant script changes made to avoid offending anyone, they also expressed disappointment in Ford’s behavior.

“Harrison Ford was one of the crankiest performers I ever dealt with. Which was sad. I’m a fan. But he was very much a diva. I don’t know if you , but he got in a plane crash. He couldn’t even raise his left arm above his chest. We have to suit up 80-something Harrison Ford in these motion-capture dots. To me, it seemed like he hated it and didn’t want to do it.”

Despite the specificity of these claims, which suggest at least some truth, director Julius Onah called Variety to push back on allegations of on-set discord. More seasoned in Hollywood diplomacy, he chose his words carefully:

“All I can speak to is my experience with Harrison. He was an utter professional. He is a guy who’s incredibly serious and ionate about his work. The creative process is one where you have these really meaningful and, at times, ionate conversations, but it was always working towards a target where we were making the best version of the film possible.”

Captain America: Brave New World is more interesting as an industry checkpoint than as entertainment. The film isn’t intriguing — point blank. Some even consider it the worst MCU entry yet. But in reality, its production has nothing to do with it and it wasn’t even all that different from other Marvel movies. The MCU has always prioritized being inoffensive, focused more on escapism through sneaking in Easter eggs than exploring actual themes, and dealt with its fair share of on-set disputes. Ford isn’t even the first Hulk actor to clash with the crew — Ed Norton was reportedly so controlling that he was replaced by Mark Ruffalo. The only real difference now is that people suddenly have started caring about how the sausage was made.

The truth is, the MCU is no longer the most dominant force in pop culture. You could blame it on the definitive finality of Avengers: Endgame or Kevin Feige’s creative decisions since then, but it’s clear these films don’t feel like must-see cinematic events. It’s the same reason some fans balked at Amazon taking full creative control of the Bond franchise, worried it would become yet another cinematic universe modeled after the MCU’s heyday. There’s no risk in that. Maybe Marvel shouldn’t have gotten cold feet ing Thaddeus Ross as a Trump allegory despite concerns about a “politicized” environment. That would’ve been a real risk — something worth actually discussing.

There are more MCU movies on the way, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps already looks like it’s forging its own path — it’s a period piece, seemingly set in a completely different universe. You could say the same about Thunderbolts*; its cinematography alone suggests a departure from the usual MCU aesthetic. Moving forward, Marvel needs to keep pushing boundaries and deliver experiences fans haven’t seen before. For better or worse, they can no longer just put out a direct sequel to a film from 17 years ago and expect it to work. The fans deserve and expect more.

Harrison Ford is a living legend. Anyone working with him hopes for a pleasant experience with their hero. Whether he was really that grumpy on the sets of the film or only a few staff formed a bad opinion of the actor, if that’s the biggest takeaway from your movie, maybe it’s time for some soul-searching.

“Movie star” is a complicated term. On the one hand, it implies performances that are a fair bit more sugary than the dramatic and comedic character work that most actors prefer to be known for. But on the other hand, the unique cultural impacts they’re capable of making can’t be overlooked, and the one made by Harrison Ford over the years is a testament to that.

Indeed, the 82-year-old has been Indiana Jones, Han Solo, Rick Deckard, Jack Ryan, and now the MCU’s new Thaddeus Ross as of Captain America: Brave New World. By all appearances, the career he’s leading is as lucrative as ever, but Ford wouldn’t quite define it that way.

Harrison Ford opens up about his busy year and shares what it'll take for him to retire. pic.twitter.com/fusIngOg6h

— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) February 20, 2025

Speaking recently to Entertainment Tonight‘s Cassie DiLaura at the premiere for the second season of 1923 (in which Harrison Ford portrays one Jacob Dutton), Ford was asked how he would describe the current chapter of his career, and — without missing a beat — the crown jewel of Lucasfilm landed on “stupid,” eliciting laughs from both himself and DiLaura.

DiLaura wasn’t buying it, pointing out how Ford’s relevance in the industry and the wider pop zeitgeist hasn’t diminished even after all these years. “You’re everywhere!” exclaimed DiLaura. “I’m a little too everywhere,” replied Ford.

He would go on to point out that he took the 1923 job because he wanted to take advantage of being presented with great material (a privilege he was not afforded for his Marvel debut), and that he plans to retire as soon as people “forget [his] name.”

In all likelihood, Ford’s candidness isn’t an act for the cameras. He doesn’t quite seem to understand why everyone is obsessed with him, nor why anyone seems to believe that he’s as invested in the mythology of his projects as they are. “I was there,” he says of the new 1923 season, which he also says he hasn’t watched. And when asked if there were hopes to keep the story going, he quite plainly said “I just work here. Taylor [Sheridan] tells me when he’s out of story.”

He’s hardly been the only one to speak frankly about the side of the job that traffics in fandom curiosity/obsession. Daniel Craig, of 007 fame, went viral just a few months ago for his response to the question of who should play the next James Bond. It’s a question that’s been hovering around for a hot minute now, with a fancast seemingly coming out every other week.

Craig’s response? “I don’t care.” It’s no great assumption that you’d get a similar answer from Ford if you asked him who the next Thaddeus Ross should be.

But hey, everyone seems to want Ford in their franchise, and while it’s one thing to not care about certain strands of popular fiction, it’s quite another to not care about five- or six-figure checks. If he runs into some inspired writing here and there, that’s even better.

Captain America: Brave New World didn’t exactly usher in the courageous status quo shift its title promised — in fact, it hardly even nodded in that vague direction. Still, there was one intriguing moment that teased the next big MCU crossover event. No, not that truly awful post-credits tag, but the scene in which Harrison Ford’s President Ross tasks Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) with reassembling the Avengers.

Of course, Brave New World never gets anywhere near interesting enough to actually explore Sam bringing together a new Avengers team. And yet presumably we can take this as a promise that he will be the one to recruit his fellow heroes to battle Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom when the time comes in Avengers: Doomsday (and that time will come soon enough — it’s out in May 2026).

But with the MCU’s hall of heroes bigger than ever, it’s not so easy to guess who will be on Sam’s New Avengers team and who won’t. So let’s channel the Leader and consider the most statistically probable candidates.

Sure things:

Spider-Man 24533h

There’s no way Tom Holland isn’t going to play a big role in Avengers 5 and 6. Not just because of his own star power and Spidey’s popularity, but because the Russo brothers have always loved to mine Peter Parker and Tony Stark’s relationship for all its worth — and now that Downey is playing Doom, the dramatic potential is practically swinging off the walls.

Falcon 715832

No, not Sam himself. Danny Ramirez’s Joaquin Torres officially received his promotion to Captain America’s sidekick in Brave New World and a running gag saw him eager to the Avengers. After almost losing his life saving the day, Sam jokingly offers him a spot on the team at the end of the film. It’s not a binding contract, but it would be a mean move if he took the offer back.

Bucky Barnes 5q454b

Given that he and Sam go way back, Bucky — or Congressman Barnes, as I guess we should now refer to him — is surely a safe bet for the new Cap’s new Avengers team. Especially as Bucky is very much in the limelight right now, with his leading role in this May’s Thunderbolts*. Speaking of which, expect many of that gang to have cameos in Doomsday, too.

Doctor Strange 2l3v18

Benedict Cumberbatch is trying his best to confuse us on whether he’s actually in Doomsday or not, but Doctor Strange has got to be too powerful a player to leave on the bench. Victor Von Doom is a sorcerer, too, , so the chance to have the two doctors engaging in a magic battle is too delicious to up.

Shang-Chi 5n4rg

When Shang-Chi‘s Destin Daniel Cretton was set to direct, Simu Liu’s master martial artist was expected to have a major role in Avengers 5. The Russos, meanwhile, are bound to want to sideline the new guys for their own favorites, but as one of the Multiverse Saga’s most popular fresh faces, Liu must still be a shoe-in for Avengers hip.

Captain Marvel 2q673

Brie Larson seems to be distancing herself from the MCU a little of late, but much like Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel is too big a gun to abandon. She totaled Thanos’ mothership single-handed, so she would be an invaluable asset in the fight against Doom.

Possible recruits:

She-Hulk 1c2e3k

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law sadly suffered from some poisonous backlash, which casts doubt on whether Tatiana Maslany could return as Jennifer Walters (her outspoken dislike of Disney CEO Bob Iger probably isn’t a big help, either). And yet what’s an Avengers team without a Hulk? Speaking of whom, Mark Ruffalo’s OG Green Goliath is still around, don’t forget.

Hawkeye 62262p

Speaking of, Bruce Banner’s fellow original Avenger Clint Barton is still active in the MCU’s timeline. Jeremy Renner had his shocking injury a few years back, but now that he’s returned to acting there’s a decent chance of a Hawkeye comeback. I’d say Kate Bishop, too, but she might be reserved for the Young Avengers.

Star-Lord 215c24

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ended with the surprising development that Star-Lord had returned to Earth to reconnect with his grandfather. Although not heard from since, this does easily set him up for an alliance with the Avengers. And Chris Pratt did just team up with the Russos for Netflix’s The Electric State.

Ant-Man 591j15

Poor Ant-Man. Quantumania established him as Kang’s nemesis, no doubt teeing him up for a big role in Avengers 5. Now that Doom’s the big bad, however, his inclusion is far less assured (especially given how eager Marvel must be to let viewers forget Ant-Man 3 ever happened). That said, Hollywood is required to cast Paul Rudd in 57 movies per year, so…

Thor 3hy18

On a similar note, Thor: Love and Thunder failed to replicate the success of Ragnarok and there’s a sense that audiences might be tiring of the God of Thunder (Chris Hemsworth might even feel the same way). Even so, it would be shocking if the Avengers got back together and didn’t give Thor a call.

Wild cards:

Daredevil h3n4o

Charlie Cox’s trainer has already claimed Daredevil will turn up in Doomsday, but whether this is for a cameo or a major role on the Avengers team remains to be seen. He is another one in the zeitgeist right now thanks to Born Again, and it would be the perfect final evolution for the small-screen hero.

Moon Knight 5r24f

Moon Knight is typically associated with the Midnight Sons, but seeing as Marvel is taking its sweet time in doing anything with its supernatural superheroes, there could be a place for Oscar Isaac’s avatar for an Egyptian god with the Avengers. Oscar Isaac definitely has the star power.

Steve Rogers 8143z

Yes, let’s ponder the question, what if… Steve Rogers came back to serve on Sam’s Avengers roster? We still don’t know what happened to Old Man Steve after Endgame, and Evans (and Hayley Atwell) has been reliably reported to have signed up for significant roles in Doomsday. Time travel? Variants? Either way, the probability is looking good that the Avengers may be big enough for two Captain Americas.

In the Disney corner — weighing in at a $180 million production budget, more reshoots than should ever be counted, and an entire franchise’s free-falling reputation — The Harrison Ford Panic Button, The Lad On Your Left: Sam Wilson (aka Captain America) of Captain America: Brave New World!

And in the StudioCanal corner — weighing in at a $50 million production budget, a core cast that has lost no measurable steam, and a questionable Peacock-exclusive release in the U.S. — The Dame of Daft Dalliances, The Doll to End Them All: Bridget Jones of Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy!

With one Paddington Brown as our unbiased spectator of these two Valentine’s Day weekend releases, just how does this matchup shake out?

Bridget bodies Cap 11 times out of 10 y6073

There’s just no way that Sam stands a chance against Bridget. You could compare any benchmark: point to the respective reception of Brave New World and Mad About the Boy; measure goalposts that either film is endeavoring to cross; or — most importantly —assess the actual quality of the movies themselves, and you would still get the same answer. But Bridget’s advantage in this square-off goes far beyond that.

Bridget Jones, as a character, is the great equalizer. Every victory of hers is marred by a defeat brought on by her own making, be it professional, romantic, or even something as simple as falling into the mud.

The opposite, however, is also true; her attitude and mortal essence prevents any lasting misfortune, and she can therefore count on her next situation being no worse than the last. For Bridget, navigating a Thai prison is no more difficult than navigating a soup recipe, so she should naturally be able to handle Sam Wilson in a showdown, whatever that looks like.

Moreover, Bridget moves through her movie in a way that Sam could only ever purport to. Sam rhymes off what we’re expected to buy as a basis for his emotional arc in Brave New World, but when the time comes to walk to the walk, we just get a faceful of CGI, poorly-developed intrigue, and a desperate Bucky cameo. However well established he was in the past, Sam hardly s as a character in Brave New World.

Bridget, by contrast, throws herself head-first into the storytelling nuances of Mad About the Boy, fully living in and reckoning with all the changes and challenges that have defined her life up until now. By now, it’s clear that her inability to catch a break was never true failure on her part — it was simply a fact of incompatibility between Bridget’s obsessive and animated way of life, and an indifferent (and, let’s face it, pathologically boring) world of adulthood. Indeed, Bridget inhabits a totally different world than everyone else, which speaks directly to the dramatic irony that the Bridget Jones films employ so heavily.

And that harmonious coalescence between titular character and their own film/story is simply not found between Sam Wilson and Brave New World. Thus, with every meaningful angle examined on this cage match, there is simply no way that Bridget Jones does not come out on top in her fight against Sam Wilson. Go watch Mad About the Boy instead of Brave New World.

When those early Captain America: Brave New World reactions first began circulating, it seemed no one could agree on anything. Every praised action sequence was met with a laceration of its plot, and every praised plot point was met with a laceration of an action sequence. As a result, we all geared ourselves up for a mixed Marvel bag here; not quite an Infinity Saga-level production, but not total slop, either.

Then the reviews started coming in, which eventually brought us to the current 50% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the third-lowest in the entire universe thus far, ahead of Eternals (47%) and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (46%).

But then I actually got my own eyes on this specimen, and I having two very distinct thoughts during that excursion. The first was at the beginning; one of dread when I noticed the lack of the classic MCU title card and music. The second was at the end; one of utter mortification upon realizing it was prophetic of Marvel Studios’ faith in itself, as well as the franchise that it continues to recklessly torpedo.

Captain America: Brave New World is the lowest that the MCU has ever gone in of cinematic releases, and it’s not even close. What was pitched to us as an “old-school Marvel” political thriller was instead a roundup of aged loose ends that were Frankensteined into three, threadbare plotlines that hold up even less when they try and fit together. Needle drops and contrived moral monologues from Sam Wilson try and tread water but only sink the ship further, all while it pretends to be clued into the cultural climate despite working overtime to remain as narratively docile as possible.

Indeed, we’ve gone beyond mere market-driven and product-first filmmaking with Brave New World; we’re now at a point where Marvel Studios could arguably be accused of making its own downfall an item of its perverted objectification. Studio meddling is now the grotesque main course when it was once just an irritant that had to be worked around, like shoveling snow or putting on sunblock.

In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — two Phase Four films and the last real bastions of the good that this franchise could do — James Gunn and Ryan Coogler still had to deal with those CGI army fights, but they hardly ed as drawbacks given how strong both of their films were. The ill-fated Eternals and Quantumania were not as lucky, but even then, you could still identify the necessary tweaks needed to actualize a good version of those films (namely, axe Kingo, Thena, and Gilgamesh from the ensemble, and trap Ant-Man in the Quantum Realm so as to tee up what should have been Cassie Lang’s arc).

You can do no such thing with Brave New World. There’s no mistakes to be fixed because there’s no basis for what this story wants to do, which is directly a result of Marvel Studios trying to make this film as consumable as possible for everyone everywhere. If you stand for nothing, you can’t be disliked, but you certainly won’t be respected. Sam Wilson tells us what he’s dealing with, but then doesn’t live it out in the plot. Brave New World is an impression of a xerox of an idea of a story, drenched in Marvel’s sugary IP to try and make up for it.

With Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps on the horizon — not to mention the wealth of storytelling talent populating James Gunn’s DC Universe as opposed to Marvel’s legion of yes men — Brave New World was the last film that Marvel Studios could afford to get wrong. If Marvel so much as flirts with this degree of narrative carelessness again, it’s going to be curtains on the Feigeverse, and we’ll be all the better for it.