Warning! This article contains spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World.
Captain America: Brave New World is a story which draws inspiration from the Marvel Comics, but thisMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) entry has distinct differences to the source material. As the MCU gets firmly into the latter half of the Multiverse Saga, the storylines have all diverged. Where the Infinity Saga saw the heroes coming together, the Multiverse Saga has marked a period of division and confusion regarding heroes, and who will fight for the Earth.
After Steve Rogers retired from his role as Captain America, he passed the shield to his dear friend Sam Wilson, and Sam has since stepped up to become the new Cap. And whileCaptain America: Brave New World certainly shows Sam's potential to lead a new team of heroes, it also spends a lot of time introducing a wide range of new andreturning characters in the MCU. And with all these additions,there are plenty of areas where the film stands apart from the comics.
10 Samuel Sterns' Leader Has Mutated In A Very Different Way To The Comics
The Character Did Not Appear As People Anticipated
One of the biggest differences that can be immediately seen in Brave New World is the appearance of Samuel Sterns, aka, The Leader. Played by Tim Blake Nelson, Sterns initially appeared in the MCU inThe Incredible Hulk in 2008. However, the last time he was seen, Sterns was lying on the ground with a head wound, in which gamma irradiated blood from Bruce Banner was slowly dripping in and mutating his DNA.
What is the best future for Captain America: Brave New World's villain and Red Hulk?
At the end of Captain America: Brave New World, Ross takes accountability for his actions and ends up incarcerated in the Raft now that he can turn into a Hulk. However, it's revealed that Samuel Sterns is also being held in the Raft. As such, I think it would be pretty exciting if Sterns joined forces with Baron Helmut Zemo, another confirmed villain imprisoned in the maximum security facility. Furthermore, perhaps Sterns has some secret contingency mind control techniques he could use to force Ross' Red Hulk to help them escape, with the trio then creating a dark team of MCU foes.
This was a clear setup for The Leader's arrival, and while the MCU took decades to deliver on the tease, the character did not appear as people anticipated. Usually, The Leader is green, with a large head that contains his massively enhanced brain. InBrave New World,the brain is slightly larger than normal, and appears to be protruding from Sterns' head, whilehis skin is a translucent gray-green color, and one of his eyes has glazed over.
9 Ruth Bat-Seraph Is Working For The United States President In The MCU
She Is A Highly Trained Agent Of The US Government
In the comics,Ruth Bat-Seraph is a popular superhero also known as Sabra. Sabra works for the Israeli Secret Service, and is often viewed as an Israeli counterpart to Captain America. However, in the movie, her nickname is never mentioned, and the character is not working in collaboration with the Israeli government, butserving asa head of security to the newly appointed President Thaddeus Ross.
Evidently, her affiliation and allegiance to America over Israel drastically alters this character.
Evidently, her affiliation and allegiance to America over Israel drastically alters this character. While Sabra is usually a beacon of hope and an incredibly powerful hero from another side of the world, she is now a highly trained agent of the US Government, and appears to have no great allegiance to a nation such as Israel, or the Jewish heritage typically seen from the character in the comics.
8 Ruth Bat-Seraph Was Trained In The Red Room As A Widow
The Same Training Grounds That Produced Natasha Romanoff And Yelena Belova
This takes us back to Bat-Seraph's origin story. In the comics, she is born a mutant, and possesses powers similar to Captain America in terms of enhanced strength, speed, stamina and endurance. She also has the ability to sometimes share her powers and life force with others. However, in order to keep the story grounded, the MCU has drastically altered Bat-Seraph's origins.
InBrave New World, Bat-Seraph was trained and reared in the Red Room, the same awful training grounds that produced powerful heroes like Natasha Romanoff and Yelena Belova. This means, from a young age, Bat-Seraph was trained to be an assassin, with no association with Israel. What happened between her childhood in the Red Room, and her ascent to become the President's head of security has yet to be seen, but it's clear that it will be a drastic departure from the comic books.
7 Thaddeus Ross Transforms Into The Red Hulk Thanks To Pills
The Leader Was Quietly Poisoning Him For Many Years
Another origin story that has been significantly altered is that of the Red Hulk. In the comics, theRed Hulk was originally a mystery character. They arrived and caused immense chaos and destruction, but it wasn't until years later that the true identity of this character was revealed to be Thaddeus Ross. Due to The Leader experimenting on Ross with gamma radiation combined with cosmic energy, Ross was transformed to become the Red Hulk.
In the MCU, The Leader is still responsible for making Ross into the Red Hulk, but, rather than using cosmic energy, The Leader has laced pills with gamma radiation. Over many years,The Leader has given Ross these pills to help him recover from another illness, while quietly poisoning him with the radiation that would eventually see him transform. And when he first transforms, the entire ordeal is incredibly public, which means his identity is in no way concealed.
6 The Serpent Society Is A Team Of Ordinary Mercenaries
There Is No Snake Theme
The Serpent Society is not a huge part of Marvel Comics, but they do go back as far as 1985. This group of highly skilled mercenaries all have mutations, powers, and codenames that relate to snakes, making thema group of snake-themed villains. But when it came time to bring them into the MCU, the Serpent Society underwent major changes.
Giancarlo Esposito Teases His MCU Future After Upcoming Captain America: Brave New World Debut
As he is about to make his debut in the MCU this year, Giancarlo Esposito teases what may be in store for him after Captain America: Brave New World.
InBrave New World, characters likeSidewinder, played by Giancarlo Esposito, were introduced after the movie had already begun filming, with the characters being added in reshoots. And the impact in the film on the Serpent Society is felt strongly, withthese characters largely being absent, or being ordinary mercenaries for hire.There is no snake theme, and more often than not, it's just Esposito playing Sidewinder, with the other Serpents somewhere off-screen.
5 Sidewinder Has No Powers Or Mutations
The Character Is Very Different From The Comics
Yet, even in the case of Sidewinder himself, the character is very different from his comic book counterpart. Seth Voelker started life in comics as a professor of economics in 1980. Then, when he loses his position as an educator, Voelker transitions to a role as a financial analyst for the corrupt Roxxon Oil Corporation. However, he was not working for Roxxon long before he underwent a major transformation.
Voelker underwent experimental surgeries which granted him the ability to teleport, and causedmutations that resulted in him resembling a snake. Thus, Sidewinder adopted the nickname, and he used his new powers as a way to help criminals in getting out of tough spots. He then proceeded to form his own group of villains in The Serpent Society.
4 Adamantium Is Being Harvested From The Body Of A Celestial
The Origin Is Clearly Alien In Nature
One of the pivotal elements ofCaptain America: Brave New World was the discovery of Adamantium. Having reached the now frozen Celestial in the middle of the Indian Ocean, several nations, such as Japan and the USA began conducting research on Celestial Island, which led to the discovery ofa new metal with unique properties that could revolutionize several industriesaround the world; Adamantium.
Adamantium is also present in the comics. However, the material is a metal alloy which is a closely guarded secret held by the US Government. This was the material in the comics which is used to create Captain America's shield, and the same metal which is infused with James Howlett's skeleton, taking him from a powerful mutant with a healing factor into the lethal Weapon X, aka, Wolverine. In the MCU, the origin is clearly alien in nature, which could make this material more similar to the material that formed Thor's hammer, or Vibranium, which also came to Earth on a meteorite.
3 The Winter Soldier Is Running For Congress
Bucky Is Getting A Whole New Storyline
One surprise appearance in the film featuresJames Buchannan Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier. While in the comics, Bucky has a similar journey to what has been seen in the MCU over the course ofCaptain America: The Winter Soldier andCaptain America: Civil War, his path has diverged over his more recent MCU appearances. In the comics, Bucky was the one to take up the mantle as Captain America first after Steve Rogers, though Steve returns and Sam eventually takes over the role.
This story is unlike any for the character in the comics, but it will certainly play a part in shaping his future in theThunderbolts*movie and beyond.
But as seen in Brave New World, Bucky is getting a whole new storyline withthe former brainwashed assassin who worked for HYDRA for decades now running for congress. This story is unlike any for the character in the comics, but it will certainly play a part in shaping his future in theThunderbolts*movie and beyond.
2 Sam Wilson Doesn't Have Any Powers
His Character Arc Is Defined By His Normalcy
One of the biggest parts of Brave New World's story goes into defining Sam Wilson as Captain America, and why he makes sense despite having no powers. In his scene with Bucky, his old friend drops an incredible line about how Steve Rogers was someone that people could believe in, but Sam Wilson, an ordinary man, is someone that people can aspire to be like. As a result, Sam's character arc is defined by his normalcy, and his ability to stand up for others without having some special gift.
Box Office - Captain America: Brave New World Earns 2025's Biggest Debut Yet Despite One Of MCU's Lowest RT Scores [Full Chart Update]
The new Marvel Cinematic Universe movie Captain America: Brave New World breaks a 2025 record in its opening weekend in spite of its mixed reviews.
Butin the comics, Sam Wilson is actually a superhero. Thanks to radiation from the Cosmic Cube, Sam develops the ability to communicate with birds telepathically. Similar to Ant-Man, he uses these creatures to aid him in battle, and to conduct special missions. In fact, Redwing, the robot sidekick Sam has in the MCU, is a real bird in the comics. None of that has made it into the movies, and with the MCU doubling down on how normal Sam is a hero, it would be a mistake to alter his powerset now.
1 Sam Wilson Is Set To Form A New Team Of Avengers
This Is One Of The Best Additions ToBrave New World
Another through line inCaptain America: Brave New World is the idea of forming a new Avengers team. Initially, Ross wanted Sam to set up the team on his behalf, which would mean working with and reporting to the President on operations. However, by the end of the movie, Sam is convinced thatsetting up a new Avengers team is an important next step, and so he commits to this going forward.
In the comics, Sam is rarely a leader in the Avengers, though he sometimes steps up to serve in that role in the absence of Steve Rogers. However, it's a much bigger departure to actually have Sam founding a team of superheroes. Regardless, this is one of the best additions toCaptain America: Brave New World, and a plot point that sets up future MCU stories.
- Release Date
- February 14, 2025
- Runtime
- 118 minutes
- Director
- Julius Onah
- Writers
- Dalan Musson, Malcolm Spellman
- Franchise(s)
- Captain America,Marvel Cinematic Universe
Cast
Sam Wilson / Captain America
Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross / Red Hulk
Upcoming MCU Movies
The Fantastic Four: First Steps
- Release Date
- July 25, 2025
9 Images
The Fantastic Four standing together with their suits in The Fantastic Four: First Steps Marvel/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection
Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards uses his super stretching powers to fight Galactus in The Fantastic Four: First Steps 
Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm looking shocked in The Fantastic Four First Steps © Marvel / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards in the MCU with a giant explosion in the background 
Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm looking upward in awe in The Fantastic Four First Steps 
The Thing smiling in The Fantastic Four: First Steps 
Pedro Pascal Reed Richards looking at Joseph Quinn Johnny Storm as he burns in The Fantastic Four First Steps 
Sue Storm holds a baby Franklin Richards close to her face in The Fantastic Four: First Steps 
Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards looking scared in a space suit in The Fantastic Four: First Steps as he looks up
