Captain America 4: Release date, cast, plot & more

Here’s everything we know about Captain America 4, Anthony Mackie’s first solo movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, from its release date to cast, plot, and other details.

The MCU’s Phase Four has reached its end, for better or worse. It kicked off with a too-little-too-late solo outing for Black Widow, introduced martial arts to the franchise with Shang-Chi, enlisted a whole new team with Eternals, played with a triumvirate of wall-crawlers in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and that’s before we get to Doctor Strange, Thor, and *gestures wildly* all the Disney+ content.

One such small-screen release was The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, exploring the continuing missions and adventures of Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).

The series set the stage for Captain America, with Wilson now in total, proud ownership of the shield. But what will it be about, when will it be released, and who is set to star and direct Captain America 4?

Captain America 4 title: What’s it called?

The fourth Captain America film has been titled Captain America: New World Order.

Captain America 4 release date: When is it coming out?

Captain America 4 is due for release on May 3, 2024, the second-last film in the MCU’s Phase Five before Thunderbolts.

Julius Onah, who previously directed The Cloverfield Paradox (massive yikes) and the critically-acclaimed Luce, has been tapped to direct New World Order. So, 50/50 odds, then.

If we’re looking ahead at the MCU slate, we’ve got Black Panther: Wakanda Forever later this year, followed by Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and The Marvels in 2023.

Captain America 4 trailer: Is there a trailer for New World Order?

No, there isn’t a trailer for Captain America 4 at the time of writing, but we’ll update this space upon it being shared online.

Captain America 4 cast: who’s starring in the sequel, and are there any new characters?

Anthony Mackie will star as Sam Wilson/Captain America, taking on the mantle of the titular hero, following the events of Avengers: Endgame and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Harrison Ford will also play General Thaddeus E. “Thunderbolt” Ross, taking over the role once played by the late William Hurt. Tim Blake Nelson is also returning to the MCU as The Leader, the villain set up at the end of The Incredible Hulk.

Both Danny Ramirez and Carl Lumbly are also returning to reprise their roles from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier as Joaquin Torres and Isiah Bradley, respectively.

Newcomers to the MCU include Israeli actress Shira Haas as Sabra and Xosha Roquemore in an unknown role, according to a report from Deadline.

It would be sensible to expect Sebastian Stan to return as Bucky, given his past roles in every Captain America movie and his developed relationship with Sam in the Disney+ series. However, it’s unclear if Bucky would still be carrying any trauma as the Winter Soldier, or if it would involve him becoming the White Wolf.

As for other possible cast members in Captain America 4, it’s also unclear whether we’ll see the return of Emily VanCamp’s Sharon Carter, Wyatt Russell’s John Walker, aka US Agent, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. The latter character was tipped to “replace” Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury by producer Nate Moore.

There’s also a question mark hanging over Chris Evans, who famously played Steve Rogers in past Captain America movies and held the shield for the Avengers’ face-offs with Thanos. Earlier reports claimed he’s set to return to the MCU in some form, but there’s been no details thus far.

He’s very supportive of his former co-star, though. In response to The Hollywood Reporter on Twitter, which pondered his participation if the “question of who is entitled to carry the shield continues” in the fourth film, he wrote: “Sam Wilson is Captain America.”

Captain America 4 plot: What will it be about?

According to producer Nate Moore, the plot of Captain America 4 will follow Sam as he adapts to being Captain America.

During an appearance on Comic Book’s Phase Zero podcast, he said: “I think, he’s not Steve Rogers and I think that’s a good thing.

“Because to me, this new Cap is Rocky. He’s going to be the underdog in any situation. He’s not a super soldier. He’s not a hundred years old. He doesn’t have the Avengers. What happens with this guy who announces publicly kind of, without the support, ‘I’m new Captain America.’ What happens next?

“I think it’s fascinating because he’s a guy. He’s a guy with wings and a shield, but he is a guy. So, we’re going to put him through the wringer and make him earn it, and see what happens when he is outweighed, outclassed, out-everything.

“What makes somebody Captain America? I’m going to argue it’s not being a super soldier. And I think we’re going to prove that with Mackie and Sam Wilson.”

Marvel Studios

Steve Rogers gave the shield to Sam Wilson in Avengers: Endgame.

At the end of Avengers: Endgame, an elderly Steve Rogers gave Sam the shield, making him the new Captain America. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier saw Sam wrestle with the reality of taking on that mantle, initially giving the shield away while the government enlisted John Walker as the official replacement.

However, Walker proved to be a bit of a wildcard – ie, he nearly cut a man in half with the shield – and with the help of the Wakandans, Sam flew to New York with a snazzy new suit, uniform, and his trusty shield, thereby becoming known as the new Captain America.

It’s unclear whether we’ll see a continuation of Walker’s story in the sequel, after Valentina recruited him. It’s also unconfirmed whether we’ll see Sharon again, who was pardoned by the CIA and planned to use her access to sell government secrets.

As well as likely following the next steps of Bucky, it was also hinted that Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) would take up Sam’s old mantle as the Falcon.

Recently, regular Marvel insider Daniel Richtman, has stated that the movie will be primarily about “an international conflict over a new metal called Adamantium.” Of course, Adamantium is what coats Wolverine’s bones, so perhaps the X-Men could be getting involved in the plot. Not only that, but reportedly the location of this metal will be Tiamut Island, which is the island formed by the calcified Celestial in the Eternals film, perhaps linking their story to Captain America’s. Though of course, these are just rumors so far, and have not been confirmed by Marvel.

We’ll update this article upon further announcements.