Summary
Disney released a deleted scene that expands on one of the MCU’s weakest recent outings. While most deleted scenes show a justification for being cut, the Marvel moment makes the film look worse in retrospect because it likely shouldn’t have been excluded.
Captain America: Brave New Worldhad big shoes to fill. It was Anthony Mackie’s first feature film as the titular hero, introduced Red Hulk to the MCU, and brought in new beloved actors Harrison Ford and Giancarlo Esposito. The superhero sequel opened to less-than-stellar reviews, as the movie’s reshoots were often apparent, and the trailers gave away significant plot points. Its box office returns also underwhelmed compared to the franchise’s earlier entries. However, with everything seemingly cut fromCaptain America: Brave New Worldleading to lackluster results, a newly released deleted scene suggests that there may have been excluded moments that could have helped improve the movie if they had stuck around.
Disney Released A Deleted Scene GivingCaptain America: Brave New WorldMore Context
While Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson is the protagonist ofCaptain America: Brave New World, the film tells the story of several characters. Audiences are given Joaquinn Torres' story that sees him earn his title as the new Falcon and the chance to revisit Tim Blake Nelson’s Samuel Sterns, aka The Leader, who was last seen in 2008’sThe Incredible Hulk. Brave New World also has Harrison Ford taking over the role of Thaddeus Ross from William Hurt, who sadly passed away in 2022.
The movie is a follow-up toThe Falcon and the Winter SoldierTV series, which saw Sam Wilson earn his place as Captain America. On the show, one character fromMarvel Comics introduced into the MCUwas Carl Lumbly’s Isaiah Bradley. Bradley is a War Vet who suffered through inhuman super serum trials against his will, surviving the ordeal that claimed the lives of many others.Falcon and the Winter Soldiershed light on the character’s story, highlighting the injustice he suffered at the hands of the government.Captain America: Brave New Worldcontinues to flesh out Bradley’s story, seeing him as an unwitting pawn in an evil plan to kill the president, whose newfound shackles mirror his earlier hardships.
The deleted scene offers Sam Wilson’s time at the White House to let fans know where in the movie’s timeline it would have fallen if it were left intact. The short moment sees a quick exchange between Ford’s President Ross and Lumbly’s Bradley. Ross, who is looking to change his ownimage inBrave New World, lets Bradley know that what happened to him is a blemish on America’s history, and he hopes to make it right if he can. While these themes persist throughout the movie, this quick scene offered a heartfelt exchange between the two, which could have helped to make the following assassination attempt more impactful.
The Short Scene Could Have Expanded OnCaptain America: Brave New World’sThemes
There are numerous themesat play inCaptain America: Brave New World, like the complexities of politics and leadership, with the movie focusing on the legacy that several characters may leave within the MCU, including Captain America, Thaddeus Ross, and Isaiah Bradley. Bradley’s story offers one of the most emotional arcs in the MCU, as he was the victim of a horrific injustice, with audiences easily able to sympathize with his position in life. When he is again used as a pawn in someone else’s plan, his story takes another dark turn, as he doesn’t want to return to confinement, which viewers understand. Furthermore, the character only wanted peace, with notoriety thrust upon him.
With much of the film’s runtime dedicated to Sam attempting to clear Bradley’s name, the fact that President Ross wanted to help with a similar act prior to the assassination attempt speaks volumes. The deleted scene may have only been a minute long, but the exchange between the two could have further endeared Bradley’s plight and state of mind to the audience, along with reinforcing Ross' true intentions, which ultimately become manipulated.
Bradley’s story also speaks to systemic issues within government and culture, with the character serving to elucidate subjects that some would rather shy away from or ignore completely. WithBrave New Worldalready relegating Bradleyto an inciting plot point, the scene could have allowed the themes to feel more potent in the narrative.
Captain America: Brave New WorldCould Have Been A Better Movie With The Scene Intact
Captain America: Brave New Worldalready felt like a film cobbled together with reshoots and various script changes. The movie is guilty of several things, like underutilizing Giancarlo Esposito in his MCU debut after years of speculation surrounding the character he would ultimately play, and revealing Red Hulk in the trailers, as he isn’t seen until the film’s finale, making the moment a bit of a spoiler. The end result was an MCU entry that felt like a mishmash of ideas, with a far better movie existing somewhere among the footage. With so many things cut andreworked inCaptain America: Brave New World, the exclusion of the conversation between Bradley and Ross speaks to the lack of vision in the final product.
In retrospect, the movie is worse for leaving the scene on the cutting room floor, as it could have helped the overall story, andBrave New Worldwas in need of any help it could get. There were rumors of poor test screenings, which makes one wonder what else was cut or what tested poorly enough to leave such a potentially powerful story moment out. Fears that studio notes may have seen it simply cut for time due to the themes persisting elsewhere are unfortunate, but could prove to be the reason behind it. The reason the scene was left out remains unknown, butCaptain America: Brave New WorldandMCU fans deserve better, and it looks like there was the potential to get it.
