The gears are starting to turn at Marvel Studios for Captain America 4 as Julius Onah has signed on to direct. The upcoming chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is expected to continue the story of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, in which Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson grappled with his internal conflict over whether to carry on the Captain America mantle, as Steve Rogers asked him to in Avengers: Endgame. The final episode of the Disney+ series would see Sam combine his Falcon suit with that of a Captain America design and wielded Steve's iconic vibranium shield.

Development on Captain America 4 was first announced in early 2021, the same day as The Falcon and the Winter Soldier's finale, as the show's head writer Malcolm Spellman and another series writer Dalan Musson were brought on to pen the script for the film. Word would remain largely quiet on the MCU sequel in the year that followed, with Mackie teasing that he was getting back into superhero shape in the hopes of beginning production on the film soon. After a few months of preparation, it looks like Mackie may be back to work for Captain America 4 in the near future.

Related: Captain America 4's Story Risks Undermining Falcon & Winter Soldier's Ending

The Hollywood Reporter has brought word that Captain America 4 has found its director in Julius Onah. The filmmaker is best known for directing the Netflix sci-fi thriller The Cloverfield Paradox and the social thriller Luce. At the time of writing, no production start date has been revealed for Captain America 4.

Anthony Mackie as Captain America Sam Wilson breaking through window in Falcon and the Winter Soldier

News of Onah being brought on to direct Captain America 4 is sure to be a bit of a mixed bag for some audiences familiar with the director's prior work. The Nigerian-American filmmaker got off to a rocky critical start in his career with the crime thriller The Girl Is In Trouble and the sci-fi horror film The Cloverfield Paradox, which was infamously dumped on to Netflix the day of its release announcement during the Super Bowl to largely negative reviews from critics. However, the social thriller Luce starring Kelvin Harrison Jr., Octavia Spencer, Naomi Watts and Tim Roth scored widespread acclaim, namely for Onah's direction, building some hope for the filmmaker getting behind the camera for Captain America 4, especially given his handling of the film's timely and complex themes.

With Onah now in the director's chair and Spellman and Musson having already been at work on the script for over a year, it seems likely that a Captain America 4 filming start date should be revealed in the near future. Mackie hinted earlier this year that production on the MCU sequel would begin in the near future, though with his schedule filming the upcoming Twisted Metal show expected to run through early September, it seems more likely that the movie will begin shooting in early 2023 and aim for a 2024 release. While audiences await further details on Captain America 4, they can revisit Mackie donning his supersuit for the first time with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier streaming on Disney+.

More: MCU Phase 4 Should Have Multiple Captain Americas (Not Just Sam Wilson)

Source: THR

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