The Falcon and the Winter Soldier premieres on March 19th. Here are some Marvel Comics characters that may show up in the show’s debut.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was originally scheduled to debut in 2020. Due to the global pandemic, Marvel Studios rightfully put a hold on production. Now, the show is set to premiere in the coming weeks, with its Disney Plus debut coming on March 19th.
WandaVision is continuing to receive positive feedback from audiences, with each episode leaving viewers more and more in shock. So it’s safe to say that the expansion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe onto Disney Plus is working well. And with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier coming out soon, this will undoubtedly continue Marvel’s Disney Plus momentum.
Like most comic book shows, however, a question has come up: Which Marvel Comics characters will pop up in the upcoming series?
There’s almost always a surprise character in Marvel Studios projects. Sometimes the appearances are major. Who would have thought we’d see Red Skull again? But, there he was on Vormir in Avengers: Infinity War and then again in Avengers: Endgame.
So far, we know John Walker (U.S. Agent), Sharon Carter, and Zemo will make appearances. There’s also rumors that we may even see the Thunderbolts. Considering the amount of enemies and friends that Captain America, Falcon, and Winter Soldier have, who knows who will show up. Here are 10 characters we could see in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
Batroc
Batroc the Leaper seems like a goofy character in the comics. The overly done French accent and the leaping gimmick doesn’t help. Nonetheless, he’s taken on and defeated Captain America.
In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Batroc and Steve Rogers had a heck of a fight – one that may have ended too quickly. With Steve Rogers retired and S.H.I.E.L.D. no longer around, Batroc may see this as an opportunity to continue his crimes. His return could also be the first real test for Falcon and Bucky. If they fight him, it’s likely that they’ll keep bumping into each other. Classic, “get out of my way” action shenanigans.
Georges St-Pierre is expected to reprise his role in some capacity, so here’s hoping it’s something of a bigger role.
Crossbones
Crossbones seemingly died in Captain America: Civil War. Wanda trapped him in a telekinetic bubble with an explosion set to kill people. By all rights, he should be dead. Yet, we know that death doesn’t mean anything in comics.
Crossbones could be saved by cybernetic implants or something else entirely. There has been speculation that he could return one day and, as we still don’t know the full effects of the snaps in Avengers: Endgame, anything could happen. A stray thought from Hulk during his snap and Crossbones could be back in action.
He’s another appropriate villain for Falcon and Bucky. If he does return, look for him to be a season-ending surprise.
Taskmaster
Black Widow was supposed to premiere before The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Marvel could have banked on Taskmaster’s popularity and cast him (or her) to play a role on the Disney Plus show. Since Taskmaster has a history with Captain America in the comic books, it makes sense that he could make an appearance here.
Taskmaster is one of Marvel’s deadliest and most skilled villains. He’s even made Spider-Man cautious and he fights villains with Hulk-level strength. If Helmut Zemo is going after heroes in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, why not try and hire one of the best to help him do it? As good as Falcon and Bucky are, Taskmaster is capable of defeating them both – and this could play into their inevitable conflict really well, forcing them to work as a team to overcome him. Now that’s a fight we would all love to see.
Constrictor
Constrictor is not an A-list villain by any means. He may not even be an A-List henchman. So, you ask, if he’s not a premiere villain, then why put him on the list? Simple, his coils will look incredible on-screen and Marvel Studios is known for doing more with less.
Constrictor isn’t a big time villain, but he’s a smart-aleck – someone that everyone would be happy to see knocked out by the heroes. He also doesn’t need an entire series to make an impact. He could be a character that helps Falcon and Bucky get their act together. There’s always a moment like that in a hero’s journey – that one time where they put their differences with someone else aside and finally form a cohesive unit.
An appearance here could make Constrictor a household name indeed, bringing him closer to that A-List status.
Nick Fury
Nick Fury has a relationship with both The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. He was also incredibly close to Steve Rogers and probably remained so after his retirement to the past. There’s no reason why he wouldn’t want to know what’s going on with Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes.
Fury may have retired from S.H.I.E.L.D., but he stays informed. We saw this in Spider-Man: Far From Home and it’s pretty clear that he won’t quit the spy game until he’s dead. Who knows, knowing Fury, he may even find a way to stay involved in the afterlife. He’s that obsessive.
With Nick Fury comes the green-skinned aliens as well.
Skrulls
In December, it was announced that Secret Invasion would be a future MCU project on Disney Plus. In the comics, Secret Invasion was a story where the skrulls infiltrated Earth and replaced humans with one of their own. If Fury allowed Skrulls of himself and Maria Hill to be used in the MCU, don’t be shocked if it were to happen in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier too.
Fury wasn’t on Earth during Spider-Man: Far From Home. Maybe he’s still not. With that in mind, he may send a skrull operative he trusts to keep an eye on Sam and Bucky.
Regardless, we’ll see a Skrull in some way in the future of the MCU. It will most likely come during Secret Invasion during a flashback of how they infiltrated the world.
General Ross
Marvel Comics fans have been waiting for a lot of characters to appear in the MCU. Among them is the Red Hulk – the result of when General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross becomes the thing he hates the most to defeat his enemy and turns himself into a Hulk. The irony is certainly not lost on him.
In the MCU, Ross has been a thorn in the side of many of our heroes. He’ll undoubtedly not be happy with the fact that Steve Rogers gave Falcon his shield. It’s probably why the U.S. Agent was brought in – to become the next “official” Cap. However, when the U.S. Agent fails, Ross may get desperate. He could turn to the dark side just like he did in the comics, hiring villains to do his bidding. If you can’t beat them, join them and then beat them. And this could be the very first domino to drop in Ross becoming Red Hulk.
Sin
Believe it or not, Red Skull had a child in the comics. A girl who believes in all of her father’s lessons, Sin is a dangerous woman that isn’t to be messed with. She has a rage in her that isn’t easily matched and she is yet another person who would be upset at Falcon having Captain America’s shield. She would deal with it differently than the others – most likely with tons of destruction.
How could she be alive after all these years? Sin would still have Red Skull’s DNA. That could have kept her young. There’s another option as well. Red Skull isn’t an idiot. He could have foreseen defeat was a possibility. He would have ordered someone to keep his DNA frozen to bring a version of him back later in life. Sin would be that new version of him.
Hawkeye
With Clint Barton’s family back, he’s probably gone back to his friendlier persona Hawkeye because Ronan isn’t someone he wants his kids to see. Plus, we know that Clint is back and training a new Hawkeye. His family may have returned, but it’s doubtful that he’ll stay retired. Clint Barton won’t stay still forever.
Clint gets bored easily. Him sitting out while Falcon, Bucky, and Sharon Carter have all the fun could get to him. After all, Clint loves adventure. If he doesn’t pop up, he’ll surely get a call to do something, right? He’s the perfect Avenger to appear in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Of all the heroes here, him showing up makes the most sense.
Wanda Maximoff
Wanda may have originally been set to appear on our screens after the events of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (as WandaVision was initially supposed to be the second MCU show on Disney Plus). That leaves a question: Did either of the titular heroes show up when she broke in and stole Vision’s body? At any point were they called to go after her? Were they there when she broke in?
When an Avenger does something like this, the entire team usually gets involved. If they did intervene: One, they can’t stop her – she’s too powerful. Second, who’s to say they would? Both Falcon and Bucky understand what it’s like to lose people in the line of duty. They may let her leave to grieve however she needs to.
Black Widow
Marvel has pushed Black Widow‘s release back multiple times. During that time, theories have begunto brew, suggesting that she didn’t really die in Avengers: Endgame and questioning whether that was really her at all. Who knows? With all of these questions, we might still get an apperance from Black Widow in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
It could be Natasha Romanoff or it could be Yelena Belova. Either of these women would be a good choice. Let’s not forget that there could be more Black Widows to come out of the Red Room.
Steve Rogers
Last, but certainly not least, Steve Rogers. Rumors of Chris Evans coming out of MCU retirement have been swirling around the internet. Evans hasn’t confirmed anything, but we know this means nothing. Actors have denied things only to appear in the project in question years later. We can look at Paul Rudd in Ant-Man and, more recently, Tatiana Maslany’s denials that she would be playing Jennifer Walters in She-Hulk.
Steve Rogers isn’t going to hand the shield old and never come back. The weight of wielding the shield is heavy and it doesn’t come with an instruction manual. Both Bucky and Falcon are going to need help. At some point, they’ll go to him, or he’ll come to them. It would be cool to see old Steve Rogers throw the shield to show that he still has it. At the very least, we’d all love to see him part with some words of wisdom.
What do you think? Who else could appear in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier? Is there anyone you’d like to see? Let us know in the comments below!