Anthony Mackie has suggested that Falcon might not be taking up the mantel of Captain America after all in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. The MCU star plays former Air Force pararescue airman Sam Wilson aka Falcon – his first live-action appearance was in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Sam has been Steve Rogers’ right-hand man ever since. After the events of Avengers: Endgame, a now-retired and elderly Steve handed his iconic Captain America shield over to Falcon, encouraging him to keep it.

Sam clearly isn’t comfortable going by Captain America just yet – he’ll next be seen teaming up with former adversary turned reluctant ally Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, an original Marvel/Disney+ series that is set to premiere in March. While specific details about the plot still remain unknown, from the The Falcon and The Winter Soldier trailer it looks like Sam will be wrestling with the legacy that the Captain has left him with as he and Bucky deal with the consequences of Steve choosing to stay in the past.

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Now, Mackie has confirmed in an interview with SiriusXM that Falcon and Winter Soldier will explore who gets to take up the shield now that Captain America has retired – and also hinted that Falcon might not be the one to end up taking on the iconic role. When asked if Falcon is now Captain America, Mackie responded that “No, we don’t know that yet.” Read the full quote below:

“No, we don’t know that yet. The show, the idea of the show is basically, you know, and at the end of Avengers: Endgame, Cap decided he was going into retirement and he asked me if I would take up the shield, but at no point in time, did I agree to or say that I would be Captain America…so, the show walks the line of who is going to take up the shield and who's going to be Captain America if Steve isn't coming back.”

It seems like the U.S. Government might have other plans for who they want to continue Cap’s legacy, with new character John Walker (Wyatt Russell) donning the iconic red, white and blue suit in some of the first promotional images for Falcon and Winter Solider. Furthermore, the huge legacy of the First Avenger is obviously an incredibly tough one to live up to – though Steve clearly thinks Falcon is up to the challenge, it’s reasonable for Sam to be having doubts, especially with no super-soldier serum readily available to help him out.

However, as Steve personally chose Sam as his successor, his journey in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier may lead to the hero deciding to take on the iconic role after all, with his strong moral compass making him the perfect choice. Successfully establishing a new Captain America is arguably the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s biggest challenge in Phase 4, and the upcoming Marvel/Disney+ series is sure to see both Sam and Bucky facing all the challenges that come with passing down that iconic shield.

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The Falcon and the Winter Soldier premieres Friday, March 19 on Disney+.

Source: SiriusXM/YouTube