Anthony Mackie, the Marvel Cinematic Universe's new Captain America and star of the upcoming TV series Twisted Metal, shared his thoughts on the exact moment he found out he was cast as Sam Wilson.
Via Inverse, Mackie revealed that Sam, a.k.a. The Falcon, wasn't the character he initially wanted to play. Going into his first appearance in the MCU's Captain America: The Winter Soldier blindly, he hoped that he would play Black Panther. "I’ll never forget," Mackie recalled. "Joe Russo said, ‘Listen, so we’re doing this movie. We want you to be in it. We can’t say what character you’re playing or who else is going to be in it. Would you do it?' And that was it." His reply was straightforward. "I was like, 'You know what, I like y'all dudes. I'll do it. I'll go on this ride with you.'"
Mackie believed that his expectations were well-founded, adding, "What other major comic book figure has enough of a presence to have his own movie? So when they hit me up and they were like, 'Yo, so it’s Sam Wilson,' I’m like, 'Really?'"
How Anthony Mackie Viewed Black Panther and The Falcon
As an avid fan of Black Panther, Mackie had gone to great lengths to secure the role, including writing letters, because, in his own words, "growing up I f*cking loved Black Panther." Starting as Captain America's sidekick Falcon, Mackie's role has evolved to become a more grounded Captain America after Steve Rogers' passing of the mantle. "I think with my Cap, he's not a superhero," Mackie said, outlining Captain America's true power. "He doesn't have a super serum, so his superpower is his humanity." Distinguishing his and Chris Evans' Captain America, he also said, "I just see him as more of a humane Cap as opposed to a distinctive judge Cap -- [a] Cap of judgment, where this is right and this is wrong."
While things didn't pan out for Mackie as initially planned, he spoke in an emotional memorial about how Black Panther provided the opportunity to further develop his relationship with T'Challa, played by the late Chadwick Boseman.
Boseman has since been posthumously inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the arts. As Captain America, Mackie will suit up in Captain America: Brave New World, a title which has been updated from the original New World Order. Details from the set have indicated that Brave New World will see the MCU debut of the villainous Serpent Society.
Source: Inverse