The MCU Just Made 1 Hero Upgrade I Never Expected To See On-Screen Way Closer To Reality
Marvel Studios just made me think that one power upgrade from Marvel Comics I never expected to be seen in the MCU could actually happen in Captain America: Brave New World. Brave New World will mark Anthony Mackie's theatrical debut as Sam Wilson's Captain America, but he won't be the only new hero suiting up in the Phase 5 sequel. 2021's The Falcon and the Winter Soldier series introduced us to Danny Ramirez's Joaquín Torres, who die-hard Marvel Comics fans will know as Sam Wilson's successor as the Falcon.
Several bird-themed heroes have been introduced to the MCU over the years, including the likes of Sam Wilson's Falcon, Adrian Toomes' Vulture and Clint Barton's Hawkeye. Joaquín Torres will suit up as the new Falcon in Captain America: Brave New World, but one recent bird-themed hero makes me think his future in the MCU will be far more unusual than his predecessor's. Taking inspiration from Torres' weird Marvel Comics history, February's upcoming Captain America: Brave New World might be primed to debut him as a brand-new type of MCU superhero.
Byrdie Is A Fantastic Addition To The MCU In What If…? Season 3
Natasha Lyonne Voiced Byrdie The Duck In What If...? Season 3
What If...? season 3 brought the Multiverse Saga series to a close in epic style, but still took the opportunity to introduce some wild new characters to the MCU. Perhaps most notably, Byrdie, voiced by upcoming The Fantastic Four: First Steps star Natasha Lyonne, made her debut as an egg and child in What If...? season 3, episode 4, before joining Captain Carter, Kahhori and Storm as an adult superhero traversing the multiverse in What If...? season 3's double-finale. Byrdie is a very exciting new hero in the MCU.
Natasha Lyonne's The Fantastic Four: First Steps character hasn't yet been confirmed, and What If...? has spurred speculation that she'll be playing a live-action version of Byrdie. I reckon Marvel Studios will go in a different direction, but I would still love to see Byrdie's formidable powers in live-action. Byrdie is the hybrid daughter of variants of Darcy Lewis and Howard the Duck from Party Thor's original timeline, so she presents as a human but has some duck-like features, including enormous wings, which I am desperate to see in the live-action MCU.
Byrdie Proves The Falcon’s Wildest Power Upgrade Would Work In Live-Action
Even If Byrdie Doesn't Appear In Live-Action, Her Powers Can
I reckon it's more likely that Natasha Lyonne will be playing someone such as Alicia Masters or Frankie Raye in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, but there is still a way Byrdie's incredible powers can be seen in live-action. In Marvel Comics, Joaquín Torres receives a genetic upgrade, giving him biological wings and bird-like features, as he is spliced with Redwing to become a human/falcon hybrid. Byrdie's popularity in What If...? season 3 makes me think this could be the perfect evolution for Danny Ramirez's character in Captain America: Brave New World.
Falcon Live-Action MCU Project | Year | Version | Actor |
|---|---|---|---|
Captain America: The Winter Soldier | 2014 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Avengers: Age of Ultron | 2015 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Ant-Man | 2015 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Captain America: Civil War | 2016 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Avengers: Infinity War | 2018 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Avengers: Endgame | 2019 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier | 2021 | Sam Wilson | Anthony Mackie |
Captain America: Brave New World | 2025 | Joaquín Torres | Danny Ramirez |
While Sam Wilson always wore a wing-suit as the Falcon, Joaquín Torres' organic upgrades made him the perfect successor to the superhero mantle. Seeing Danny Ramirez get spliced with a falcon and become a hybrid has, until now, seemed far too extreme and outlandish for the MCU. What If...? season 3's debut of Byrdie could have been a test-run for this unexpected transformation for Torres in Captain America: Brave New World, and I think it would be great if the MCU could pull this evolution off.
Captain America 4 Is Perfectly Set Up To Explore The Falcon’s Huge Power Change
Captain America: Brave New World Will Introduce Powerful New Villains To The MCU
In Marvel Comics, it was the Sons of the Serpent, a racist group of antagonists, who abducted Mexican teenager Joaquín Torres and had Dr. Karl Malus perform genetic experiments on him. Malus spliced Torres' genes with those of Sam Wilson's falcon, Redwing, transforming him into a hybrid. The Sons of the Serpent seemingly won't be seen in Captain America: Brave New World, however, but I think the upcoming movie will debut a new supervillain team that could easily replace them: the Serpent Society, led by Giancarlo Esposito's Sidewinder.
The extent of Sidewinder's involvement in Captain America: Brave New World is still a mystery, but Giancarlo Esposito has teased future adventures for his new MCU villain. I reckon seeing the Serpent Society upgrade Joaquín Torres into a human/falcon hybrid would certainly open the doors for further exploration in the MCU's future. The Serpent Society are a formidable cabal of villains in Marvel Comics, each with their own skills, and some of these could be shown in the form of genetic experiments in Captain America: Brave New World.
Captain America: Brave New World
- Release Date
- February 14, 2025
- Runtime
- 118 minutes
- Director
- Julius Onah
- Writers
- Dalan Musson, Malcolm Spellman
Cast
Sam Wilson / Captain America
Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross / Red Hulk
Captain America: Brave New World (formerly titled New World Order) marks Sam Wilson's first MCU big-screen appearance as Steve Rogers' successor after receiving the suit and shield in Phase 4's The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Anthony Mackie returns as the titular Avenger alongside Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres, Carl Lumby as Isaiah Bradley, and Tim Blake Nelson as The Incredible Hulk's former ally Samuel Sterns. Harrison Ford makes his MCU debut replacing the late William Hurt as Thaddeus Ross.
After meeting President Thaddeus Ross, Sam is caught in a global crisis. He must expose the mastermind behind a sinister plot before the world descends into turmoil. Captain America: Brave New World marks the big-screen debut of Sam Wilson as Captain America, and Harrison Ford makes his MCU debut, replacing the late William Hurt as Thaddeus Ross.
- Studio(s)
- Marvel Studios
Your comment has not been saved