The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: Season 1

The Avengers have saved the world, but at a heavy cost. In the aftermath of the "Blip," life is returning to normal and those who vanished from the world for five years are having to work hard to find their way back into life, including Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes. Sam has been left the mantle of Captain America but has not felt worthy to accept it, and is conflicted when the US government asks another soldier to step up. Barnes is trying to atone for the evil he did as the super-assassin known as the Winter Soldier. When a new threat arises, Wilson and Barnes reluctantly team up to tackle it.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was originally slated as the first Disney+ original series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and actually created by the same team who worked on the movies, but COVID filming restrictions and rumoured extensive reshoots delayed it until after the debut of WandaVision. In the original plan you can see Falcon and Winter Soldier giving audiences a big, Marvel-style action spectacle before hitting them with the much weirder and more metafictional WandaVision, but circumstances reversed that order, which worked to WandaVision's benefit - a bolder, more original and stranger show than many were expecting - and unfortunately to Falcon and Winter Soldier's detriment.

That's not to say it's a terrible show. It's very competently written on a scene-by-scene basis and the cast are mostly excellent, from a returning Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan as the titular stars to the also-returning Daniel Bruhl and Emily VanCamp (both last seen in Captain America: Civil War as Baron Zemo and Sharon Carter). Wyatt Russell is splendidly annoying as the "new" Captain America, John Walker, and Erin Kellyman gives a measured, interesting performance as antagonist Karli Morgenthau.

The show's problems are mostly structural and its attempt to pack too much material into just six episodes. The series tries to be a societal commentary on Sam Wilson becoming the first black Captain America, despite his guilt when he learns what happened to other African-American members of the super-serum project after WWII, whilst exploring the psychological trauma Bucky is dealing with as a former HYDRA stooge and assassin. However, the show also tries to be a Rush Hour/48 Hours/Lethal Weapon-style buddy comedy, a villainous psychological study of both Zemo and Karli, a spy mystery about Sharon Carter and a commentary on immigration and borders. It's too much for the limited screentime and some of these plots are only dealt with briefly and not really mentioned again, like why Sam - a world-famous crime-fighting superhero who helped save the universe and is friends with people like the billionaire owner of Stark Industries - is now broke.

The series is on surer ground when the story focuses in on the two Avengers tackling enemy terrorists or dealing with off-brand WalMart Captain America's anger-management issues. The action sequences are generally quite good, and the visual effects outstanding, even if the opening set-piece of Sam taking down a helicopter sets a level the rest of the series can't really live up to (the expense of that sequence may explain why most of the other big action set-pieces happen at night).

What we're left with is a pretty solid story, but one which can lose focus for stretches of time in an attempt to tackle too many subplots and themes and ends up not really satisfyingly delivering on any them. Still, it does continue WandaVision's exploration of the Blip and how half the world's population vanishing for five years and then returning is a really huge deal rather than something to be brushed under the carpet and moved on from instantly.

Solid performances and outstanding action sequences make the one and only season of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier* (***½) worth watching, but an odd structure and rushed storytelling means it doesn't land as well as it should, and certainly not as engagingly as either of its sister shows in the first wave of MCU TV series, WandaVision and Loki. The show is available worldwide now on Disney+.

* A second season, should it materialise, would be made under the moniker Captain America and the Winter Soldier instead, apparently.

Disney and Marvel put CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 into development

Marvel and Disney have put a fourth Captain America film into development. Unlike previous instalments of the series, which saw Chris Evans starring as Steve Rogers in the title role, the new film will focus on Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson taking up the mantle.

Note: Spoilers for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier follow.

Malcolm Spellman, who executive produced and showran The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, as well as writing the critically-acclaimed fifth episode, is developing the new script with Dalan Musson, a fellow writer on the show.

The TV series saw Sam, who'd been offered the shield and the name by an aged and retired Rogers at the end of Avengers: Endgame (2019), struggling with the idea of taking on the mantle. He initially turns down the role, leading to the US government instead naming another soldier, John Walker, to the position. Walker turns out not to have the "right stuff" to be Captain America, leading Sam to finally accept the position at the end of the series.

To what degree the film will follow up on the TV series is unclear, but the TV series does put a lot of other balls in play, including having Baron Zemo (Daniel Brühl) back behind bars; Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) pardoned and returned to working for the US government, but having a shadowy agenda of her own; and Walker - having been injected with a milder form of Steve's super-serum - being recruited as a secret agent by the redoubtable Valentine Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). Sam has also formed a strong working partnership with Bucky Barnes, the reformed Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan).

This marks the first time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that the title of one major superhero has passed to another. Marvel will no doubt be assessing the success of such a move to determine how long they can keep the MCU going in the current continuity before they feel they have to reboot.

With development of the film only just starting, it's likely we won't see the film until 2023 at the earliest. and maybe more likely 2024. Between now and then Marvel plans to release Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, Black Panther II, Captain Marvel 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Fantastic Four and Blade.

Cast for HAWKEYE TV series leaked

Hollywood industry bible Variety has gained access to the cast list for Disney+'s TV series Hawkeye, which is currently shooting.

The cast is as follows:

• Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton (reprising his role from the Marvel films)
• Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop
• Vera Farmiga as Eleanor Bishop
• Fra Fee as Kazimierz Kazimierczak, aka "Clown"
• Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova (reprising her role from Black Widow)
• Tony Dalton as Jack Duquesne, aka "Swordsman"
• Alaqua Cox as Maya Lopez, aka "Echo"
• Zahn McClarnon as William Lopez

Steinfeld and Renner were caught on camera last week during filming in New York, confirming her long-rumoured involvement.

Hawkeye is one of numerous Marvel Cinematic Universe shows either shooting or in pre-production at Disney+. WandaVision will be the first show to make to air, on 15 January, with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki both wrapping and eyeing a spring-summer 2021 debut. Hawkeye and Ms. Marvel (starring Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan) are in early stages of shooting now, with She-Hulk (reportedly starring Tatiana Maslany) due to start shooting soon. Moon Knight is in pre-production, with reportedly Marvel close to signing Oscar Isaac in the starring role.

Marvel are also reportedly early in development on a Nick Fury series, with Samuel L. Jackson in talks to star.

Coronavirus pandemic impacts on SFF projects worldwide

The filming of the Disney+ series Falcon and the Winter Soldier in Prague has been shut down in response to government restrictions on public gatherings in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the first major project to be impacted by the growing infection.

Falcon and the Winter Soldier's main production base is in Atlanta, Georgia, where the show has already been filming for several months. The Prague leg of the shooting was only expected to last for a week, with the expectation that the shoot will be moved elsewhere (possibly back to the United States). In this case, the cancellation of filming in the Czech capital is unlikely to be disastrous for the project, which has an August launch date.

A bigger question mark hangs over those productions based in the area which are currently ongoing: Amazon Prime Television is currently filming the first season of The Wheel of Time and the second season of Carnival Row in and around the city. The Wheel of Time is on its last leg of filming, with production currently scheduled to last until early to mid-May. Carnival Row started shooting on 11 November, with production based in the Barrandov Studio in Prague.

The Czech Republic currently has a relatively low rate of coronavirus infection, with 94 infections and 0 deaths as of yesterday, but the country borders several European nations experiencing more severe outbreaks (most notably Germany) and is battening down the hatches in preparation for more cases.

With the infection reaching pandemic status and spreading across the world, it is likely that more productions and projects will be impacted on a global level. The release of the latest James Bond film, Fast and the Furious 9 and A Quiet Place Part 2 have been delayed (FF9 by a full year) in response to the crisis and Disney are considering whether to do the same with their next MCU movie Black Widow, which opens on 1 May. Numerous genre films and TV shows are currently filming which could be impacted in the coming weeks, including Season 2 of The Witcher in the UK and Season 1 of The Lord of the Rings: The Second Age in New Zealand.

Major SFF events and gatherings worldwide are also under threat: Eastercon in the UK is still due to go ahead next week, but may be impacted if the UK government imposes tougher restrictions in this country. WorldCon in New Zealand in August is also still scheduled. Relatively remote New Zealand has only 5 confirmed cases of the virus and has locked them down pretty tight and may stand a reasonable chance of riding out the situation, but may also impose tougher travelling restrictions as the worldwide situation changes.

The annual E3 video game conference in June has also been cancelled, but for the moment the San Diego Comic-Con in July and next month's WonderCon in Anaheim, California are still planned to go ahead.

Disney release trailers for new Marvel TV shows

Disney have released a trailer featuring the first footage shot for their first three Disney+ TV shows: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, WandaVision and Loki.

The Falcon and Winter Soldier sees Avengers Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) teaming up with disgraced former SHIELD and CIA agent Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) to confront a new threat presented by Helmut Zemo (Daniel Bruhl), follow in his success in dividing the Avengers (as seen in Captain America: Civil War).

WandaVision sees Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) recovering from the events of Infinity War and Endgame, where she saw her lover Vision (Paul Bettany) slain. Wanda's exponentially growing powers apparently see her creating her own world where Vision still lives. An adult Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), who previously appeared as a child in Captain Marvel, will play a major role alongside Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) from the Thor movies and FBI agent Jimmy Woo (Randall Park) from the Ant-Man movies. The film is both a stand-alone and will also set up the events of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness (expected for release in 2021). The film is also expected to see Wanda claim the mantle of the Scarlet Witch, a title so far unmentioned in the film series.

Loki sees the return of the Asgardian supervillain of the same name (Tom Hiddleston). This version of the character was created from a new timeline in Avengers: Endgame and thus has not gone through the redemption arc seen in films such as Thor: The Dark World, Thor: Ragnarok and Avengers: Infinity War. The footage suggests that Loki has been imprisoned by the TVA (Time Variance Authority), an organisation that protects the integrity of the timeline and tries to limit the damage done by reckless time travel.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and WandaVision will both air in late 2020, Loki is expected to air in early 2021.

Marvel reveal their movie and TV line-up for the next two years

Marvel and Disney have confirmed their upcoming slate of movies and TV shows for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Marvel Cinematic Universe head honcho Kevin Feige announced the projects at the San Diego Comic-Con, outlining their release schedule for the next five years (although, as with the previous phase, there may be some variations to this schedule as things crop up). He also confirmed that Avengers: Endgame is imminently poised to surpass Avatar at the box office to become the biggest-grossing movie (unadjusted for inflation) of all time. 

The movies and TV series confirmed and announced are as follows: 

Black Widow
1 May 2020
Directed by Cate Shortland 

Starring Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova
Also starring David Harbour, Rachel Weisz, O.T. Fagbenie and Ray Winston.

Set shortly after the events of Captain America: Civil War, this long-awaited stand-alone movie for Black Widow will also feature flashbacks to earlier in her life and career, including the much-discussed “Budapest incident.”

The Eternals
6 November 2020
Directed by Chloé Zhao 
Starring Angelina Jolie as Thena, Salma Hayek as Ajax, Don Lee as Gilgamesh, Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo, Brian Tyree Henry as Phasots, Lauren Ridloff as Macary, Richard Madden as Ikaris and Lia McHugh as Sprite.

The Eternals introduces a completely new group of characters to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a powerful race of extra-powerful beings whose attention is called to Earth by recent events.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Autumn 2020 on Disney+ (6 episodes) 
Starring Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Falcon, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, and Daniel Bruhl as Helmut Zemo, with Emily VanCamp reportedly in discussions to reprise her role as Sharon Carter.

The first Marvel show for Disney+, this series will pick up after the events of Avengers: Endgame and explore Falcon’s role as the new Captain America. He and Winter Soldier team up for apparently a lower-key, grittier story more in the tone of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Zemo, the villain of Civil War, returns and apparently will don his iconic costume at some point.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
12 February 2021
Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton 
Starring Simu Liu as Shang-Chi and Tony Leung Chiu-wai as the Mandarin. Also starring Awkwafina.

The introduction of a new superhero, who has mighty martial arts skills. Shang-Chi will be fighting the Mandarin, the real Mandarin after a fake one appeared (contentiously) in Iron Man 3.

WandaVision 
Spring 2021 on Disney+ 
Starring Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff, Paul Bettany as Vision and Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau.

This series is interesting because it is set after Infinity War and Endgame, which obviously raises the question of how Vision is in it. The mini-series has been described as a major event series which will have major ramifications for the MCU going forwards, including immediately setting up the events of the Doctor Strange sequel, so the smart money is that this series will introduce the Marvel Multiverse in full (after teasing it in Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home).

Loki 
Spring 2021 on Disney+ 

Starring Tom Hiddleston as Loki

This mini-series will explore both what happened to the alternate-universe Loki introduced during the events of Avengers: Endgame and will also expand on Loki’s backstory, featuring flashbacks to key moments in Earth history where it will be revealed that Loki had a hand. 

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
7 May 2021
Directed by Scott Derrickson 
Starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange and Elisabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch

This sequel to Doctor Strange is apparently the MCU’s first “horror movie” and will explore the ramifications of the discovery of the Multiverse, with Scarlet Witch providing continuity from her mini-series. It’s unclear if Benedict Wong or Chiwetel Ejiofor will be returning at this time. 

What If?
Summer 2021 on Disney+ 
Starring Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher, Michael B. Jordan as Killmonger, Sebastian Stan as Winter Soldier, Josh Brolin as Thanos, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Haley Atwell as Peggy Carter, Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, Neal McDonough as Dum Dum Dugan, Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark, Sean Gunn as Kraglin, Natalia Portman as Jane Foster, David Dastmalchian as Kurt, Stanley Tucci as Abraham Erskine, Taika Waititi as Korg, Toby Jones as Arnim Zola, Djimon Hounsou as Korath the Pursuer, Jeff Goldblum as the Grandmaster, Michael Rooker as Yondu Udonta and Chris Sullivan as Taserface.

The MCU’s first official animated series is an anthology alternative-universe show, narrated by Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher. Each episode explores a different “what if?” possibility from the MCU, such as Peggy Carter becoming the super-soldier instead of Steve Rogers. 

Hawkeye 
Autumn 2021 on Disney+ 
Starring Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye

A mini-series focusing on Hawkeye as he meets a talented young woman, Kate Bishop, and trains her to effectively become his replacement.

Thor: Love and Thunder 
5 November 2021
Directed by Taika Waititi 
Starring Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster and Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie

The sequel to Thor: Ragnarok, although this film feels like it will need to jump a little bit to address the ending of Avengers: Endgame (which seemed to be setting Thor up as a member of the “Asgardians of the Galaxy”). The big news is that Natalie Portman is returning to the MCU for the first time since Thor: The Dark World in 2013 (although she did provide a brief voiceover in Endgame, but the physical footage of her in that movie was cut material from The Dark World). The story will seem to revolve around Jane gaining the powers of Thor, a story arc drawn from the comic books.

Blade
Date and director to be confirmed
Starring Mahershala Ali as Blade.

In a surprise move, Marvel confirmed that they are rebooting the Blade character in the MCU. Wesley Snipes previously played the character in Blade (1998), Blade 2 (2002) and Blade: Trinity (2004). Blade is, historically, the first movie made by Marvel under the deal that would eventually pave the way to Iron Man ten years later. Snipes had been hoping to reprise the role in the MCU, and played a satirical version of the character in What We Do in the Shadows earlier this year (in an episode directed by Taika Waititi!), but going with fresh blood makes sense.

This also marks the first time a major actor from one of the Netflix shows has appeared in the films as a separate character, as Mahershala Ali had previously played Cottonmouth on Season 1 of Luke Cage, furthering he likelihood that Marvel no longer regards the Netflix shows as canon.


Other Projects
Feige also confimed that more movies are on the way. He formally confirmed that Captain Marvel 2 was coming and reconfirmed that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will be in production as soon as James Gunn finishes up on The Suicide Squad for Warners. More surprising was the absence of Black Panther 2, as they seemed ready to roll into production quite soon. The packed schedule suggests we won’t see that film until early 2022 at the earliest, a full four years after its predecessor.

In more exciting news, Feige also formally confirmed that the Fantastic Four will be introduced to the MCU, but they don’t have a schedule for that just yet. Mutants – presumably the X-Men sub-universe – are also on the cards, but are again even further down the pipe. Feige had previously suggested that we wouldn’t see the X-Men show up until 2023 and Phase Five at the earliest, and that seems to track with that.

Noteworthy by their absences are Ant-Man 3 and any future Avengers movies, which you assume has to be a shoe-in after the titanic success of Endgame, even if the next Avengers movie features a very different roster to the previous ones. There was also no confirmation for the Hulk Disney+ series that had been mooted with the possible aim of bringing in She-Hulk, or the mooted Thunderbolts film and Power Pack series for younger viewers, all of which are presumably now on the backburner.

More news as we get it.

Sharon Carter and Helmut Zemo join THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER

Marvel has expanded the cast and crew for its Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which is in pre-production. They have also confirmed that the series will be six episodes long and will air in August 2020.

Emily VanCamp is reprising her role as Sharon Carter, which she previously played in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. The niece of Peggy Carter (Hayley Attwell), she was introduced as a SHIELD agent who later transferred to the CIA. She became a possible love interest for Captain America in Civil War, although this plot thread was abandoned as a result of the events of The Avengers: Endgame.

Daniel Bruhl is reprising his rule as Helmut Zemo from Civil War. A Sokovian citizen infuriated by the destruction of his nation at the hands of the Avengers (as seen in Age of Ultron), Zemo conducted a campaign to discredit and ultimately destroy the team, resulting in its splintering into two factions. Zemo was captured at the end of Civil War, but noted that by splitting the Avengers his plan had succeeded (making him, arguably, the only Marvel villain whose evil scheme actually worked).

Kari Skogland (The Walking Dead, The Handmaid's Tale) will direct all six episodes. Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan are also reprising their title roles as Falcon and the Winter Soldier from the movies.

The casting suggests that the mini-series will tie up loose ends from the first three phases of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and pave the way for future film developments.