There will be several stories that The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will tell as soon as it hits Disney+ as the next Marvel Cinematic Universe series.
One of the stories is whether the U.S. government will allow Falcon to take on the role of Captain America. This will play into another deeper-seated question.
Director Kari Skogland asked if there was even relevance to Captain America in the United States anymore.
Is the idea of Captain America dead?
The idea of needing a Captain America in the world has played out in the pages of Marvel Comics for at least 46 years now, if not longer.
Steve Rogers in the comics gave up the role and the shield when he lost his confidence in the United States government after an event called Secret Empire. This was in Captain America and the Falcon #176 in 1974 by Steve Englehart and Sal Buscema.
He lost the public’s belief in him after a more recent Secret Empire storyline in 2017 by Nick Spencer. While this was not the real Captain America and an imposter, the world believes what the world sees.
There were also the moments where Sam Wilson was Captain America in the comics and many Americans wouldn’t accept him in the role, calling him a socialist because he is a social worker at heart and fights for the disenfranchised.
Not even Bucky Barnes could win the people over because of his past as an assassin, although he was brainwashed into doing it.
Today’s America is not capable of getting behind a unified hero. That is one thing that The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will delve into.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier director talks themes
“The central idea of it where Sam was handed the shield and what was that going to be and the exploration of will he or won’t he take on what’s this is going to be for a Black man to carry the shield,” Skogland told Murphy’s Multiverse.
There has to be, in today’s world, an examination of the public’s response to Sam Wilson taking on the role. Clearly, the trailers show that the U.S. Government wants the white All-American Captain America in John Walker.
“What is Captain America’s relevance? Is there a Captain America that makes any sense anymore? All of those questions I thought were very topically important to not just discuss but to go on a real exploration in a deep dive sort of way'” Skogland said.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier hits Disney+ on Friday, March 19.