‘Avengers: Infinity Wars’ Updates: Directors Hint Captain America Takes on New Identity; Winter Soldier Replaces Steve Rogers?

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ directors hinted that Steve Rogers may take on a new identity and will no longer be called Captain America. It was speculated that Steve’s close friend Bucky Barnes a.k.a. The Winter Soldier may be the new Cap in his place.

During an interview with the Huffington Post, directorial duo Joe and Anthony Russo revealed that Chris Evans’ Captain America may turn in his superhero identity for a new one. At the end of ‘Captain America: Civil War’, Cap was seen dropping his iconic shield after a one-on-one battle with old ally Iron Man.

 Joe Russo said, “I think him dropping that shield is him letting go of that identity… [It’s] him admitting that certainly the identity of Captain America was in conflict with the very personal choice that he was making.” Steve’s “personal choice” included supporting his friend Bucky and opposing The Sokovia Accords in the process.

Although Evans will be returning to the brothers’ upcoming ‘Avengers’ film, he may not be fighting under the Captain America mantle and instead take on a new identity. Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely revealed during a previous interview that they didn’t kill of Cap in ‘Captain America: Civil War’ since he is an important asset to the Avengers team and they would need him in the future. Markus said, “There’s a big purple guy coming. He could be very helpful,” referring to the galactic warlord and supervillain Thanos.

It was speculated that Evans may take on the identity of Nomad, according to Time. In the original Marvel comic books, Steve was investigating a rebellious organization known as the Secret Empire when he found out that the leader was a high-ranking government official. Disillusioned by the U.S. government, he abandoned his Captain America identity and went by the name Nomad. This was a short-lived stint though and Steve eventually returned as Cap later in the series.

Two characters tried to take on the Cap mantle when Steve was Nomad – specifically Bob Russo and Scar Turpin. However, it was the young and idealistic Cap fan Roscoe Simons who successfully succeeded Steve. Roscoe’s death at the hands of the Red Skull prompted Steve to drop Nomad and re-assume his original identity.

It was speculated, however, that Bucky Barnes a.k.a. The Winter Soldier may succeed Steve in the upcoming film adaptations. According to Movie Web, Sebastian Stan’s Bucky may assume the role of Cap as the MCU moves along. New fan art by Boss Logic featured Bucky in three different costume looks should he take over for Steve.

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is an upcoming action-adventure and superhero film directed by Joe and Anthony Russo. It is produced by Kevin Feige with Victoria Alonso, Louis D’Esposito, Jon Favreau, Alan Fine, and Stan Lee executive producing. It is scheduled to be released on May 4, 2018.