Captain America"s Perfect MCU Introduction Was Almost Ruined By Marvel
Summary
- The period setting of Captain America: The First Avenger was almost changed, but Kevin Feige's insistence on showing rather than telling allowed the audience to connect with Steve Rogers' story as a man out of time.
- Steve Rogers' origin story needed to take place during WWII because it was crucial to his transformation into Captain America. Updating it to modern times would have required rewriting key elements that wouldn't make sense.
- Marvel could benefit from more movies set in the past, as it provides a good blueprint for new origin stories and allows for the introduction of characters like the Fantastic Four and X-Men. Setting movies in the past adds depth to character stories and expands the possibilities for future films.
One aspect of Chris Evans' Marvel Cinematic Universe debut as Steve Rogers in Captain America: The First Avenger was almost ruined by Marvel, and, in fact, led to "screaming matches" between executives. Arriving after the earliest MCU movies, The First Avenger took viewers back in time to tell the origin story of Steve Rogers as Captain America, with the majority of the movie set in the 1940s during World War II. The film ended with Steve Rogers crashing a plane into ice and being frozen, only to be found and reanimated during the modern-set MCU just in time to suit up for The Avengers.
Much of Steve Rogers' arc throughout the MCU Captain America movies and beyond relied on the background established in The First Avenger. Not only did the movie introduce his childhood best friend Bucky Barnes—who would become the Hydra assassin, the Winter Soldier, and a key aspect of The First Avenger's sequel—but it set the stage for Steve's romance with Peggy Carter. Avengers: Endgame's final scene, which featured Steve and Peggy sharing the dance they never got in the 40s, wouldn't have been as emotionally impactful without The First Avenger's setting and story. However, the period setting of Captain America: The First Avenger was almost very different.
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