Sam Wilson’s Captain America Journey: The MCU’s Missed Opportunities

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The ending of Avengers: Endgame featured a powerful scene where Steve Rogers passed his shield to Sam Wilson, signifying his trust in Sam to become the next Captain America. Fans were thrilled and eager to see Sam embrace this heroic role. However, that transformation hasn’t yet been explored.

Currently, Sam Wilson doesn’t feel like a strong leader for the Avengers – he seems more like an extra character. This isn’t a problem with the character himself, but with how the story has been written in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The franchise hasn’t fully realized Sam Wilson’s potential.

Sam Wilson Was In An Interesting Place After The Falcon & The Winter Soldier

After initially being a sidekick, Sam Wilson finally got to take charge in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Working with Bucky Barnes, he went on a journey to prove he deserved to become Captain America, even though he hesitated at first.

While The Falcon and the Winter Soldier wasn’t Marvel’s strongest series, it effectively laid the groundwork for Sam Wilson’s journey. Seeing him grapple with becoming Captain America as a Black man, considering America’s history with Black people, was particularly compelling.

Once Sam Wilson officially becomes Captain America, he gives a moving speech that feels true to the character we’ve come to love. This moment creates a compelling new direction for his story.

Captain America: Brave New World Was A Bust

We hadn’t seen Sam Wilson for a while, and when we finally did, it was in Captain America: Brave New World. While giving Sam his own Captain America movie was a good idea, the film didn’t quite live up to its potential. It felt more like a follow-up to the 2008 movie The Incredible Hulk than a standalone story.

Despite the original film having a dedicated fanbase, there wasn’t much demand for a sequel after almost twenty years. This contributed to the generally negative reviews for Captain America: Brave New World. The movie simply didn’t feel like a major event within the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Sam has a new partner, Danny, which could be a good direction for the story. However, their connection doesn’t feel as strong or natural as the relationships we’ve seen between Sam and Steve, Bucky and Steve, or even Sam and Bucky. As a result, many viewers aren’t particularly invested in seeing their partnership develop.

Not Having Sam Wilson Appear Anywhere Else Was A Mistake

A major challenge for Sam Wilson as Captain America is his limited presence within the broader Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the MCU hasn’t felt as connected recently, even brief appearances in other projects would help solidify his role. Because Sam doesn’t have many existing relationships with other heroes, it’s difficult to envision him convincingly leading the Avengers in the future.

After Avengers: Endgame, we didn’t see the character for two years, and then not again until his own movie four years later. While it’s incredibly difficult to match Steve Rogers as Captain America, the Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t done enough to develop Sam Wilson into that role. This feels like a big mistake, particularly with another *Avengerslevel event coming up.

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2026-02-19 18:08