FALCON AND WINTER SOLDIER Star Anthony Mackie Wanted To Reference "Make America Great Again" In Finale Speech

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier star Anthony Mackie has revealed that he hoped to reference "Make America Great Again" in his first speech as Captain America...before Marvel Studios shot him down.

By JoshWilding - Jun 14, 2021 03:06 AM EST

Filed Under: Falcon and The Winter Soldier

Marvel Studios recently held a Drive-In "For Your Consideration" event at the Rose Bowl Stadium, and a number of actors were on hand to discuss their small screen roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The new Captain America, Anthony Mackie, was among them, and the actor confirmed that he was given some creative input into Sam Wilson's decision to wield the shield in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. However, it seems that there was one suggestion for Cap's final speech that studio execs weren't willing to get on board with.

"One thing I wanted to put at the end of the monologue — and it got shot down — was if we’re going to 'Make America Great Again,' it has to be done by Americans," Mackie explained. "And no matter what your race, creed, color or sexuality is, you’re an American. And that’s what I think the new Captain America captures." While The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is a series that gets political, this might have created a little too much controversy online after the finale.

Despite that, it sounds like Mackie is still pleased with how Captain America's speech turned out.

"With all of the protests and everything that went on in 2020, there were just as many Brown people as Black people as white people as Asian people," the actor explained. "Everyone, everyone in this country at this time wants to see a change, and that monologue sums that up a beautiful way."

While it wouldn't have necessarily been a bad thing to have Cap reference the slogan of a certain former President, the sort of backlash that might follow from such a moment could have massively overshadowed Sam's decision to become Captain America and the new face of the MCU.

Click on the "Next" button below for our ranking of
every episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier!

6. "Power Broker"

Our trip to Madripoor should have been one of the most exciting parts of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, but it was...just okay. Unfortunately, this episode felt a little too much like filler, with its saving grace being Daniel Brühl's unmissable performance as the villainous Baron Zemo.

The actor was clearly having an absolute blast with this retconned version of the character, and there was heaps of intrigue to be found from start to finish as we learned more about the Power Broker and "his" super soldier serum. At this point, we didn't know the ultimate reveal would be such a let-down.

Ultimately, Madripoor deserved more screentime, making this episode feel somewhat unsatisfying.

Our Review: Daniel Brühl is extraordinary as Baron Zemo, while Emily VanCamp delivers the tough-as-nails Sharon Carter we've been waiting for in this exhilarating episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

5. "Truth"

The penultimate episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier put action to one side to prioritise the show's characters (which is no bad thing). However, after the events of the fourth instalment, fans were keen for answers and "Truth" glossed over those in order to make us wait for that final chapter.

On the plus side, that battle pitting John Walker against The Falcon and Bucky was phenomenal, as was the spotlight being put on the friendship the latter two heroes had managed to develop here.

Sure, some of the dialogue was a tad on the nose, but this was still a solid effort for the most part. That training montage was badass, and the final tease when Sam opened that case made for a fun ending.

Our Review: Flag Smasher and her crew continue to underwhelm, but another strong character-driven episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier nicely sets the stage for a finale that is likely to be a game-changer for the MCU.

4. "New World Order"

The opening episode of the Disney+ series kicked off with some blockbuster visuals and an action scene that would have looked incredible on the big screen. From there, we quickly delved into what makes Sam and Bucky tick away from their fellow Avengers, and that proved to be fascinating.

The premiere was somewhat lacking on laughs, and often a little too sombre. Despite that, this was still a solid opener for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier that nicely set the tone for the series.

Its biggest mistake, however, was not bringing together the show's two leads at any point. It even failed to lay the groundwork for that in any way, making what we got in the second episode feel forced.

Our Review: The Falcon and The Winter Soldier brings the big screen blockbuster experience to Disney+ in a promising premiere that lays the groundwork for another Marvel Studios series which defies expectations and takes its leads on a thrilling journey.

3. "The Whole World Is Watching"

The spotlight was put squarely on Captain America in this episode, giving Wyatt Russell the chance to shine as he came to terms with what it meant for him to wield the shield as a normal man. That led him to tragedy, and down a dark route after taking the final vial of Power Broker's super soldier serum.

Seeing the Dora Milaje in action was also a treat, and even Erin Kellyman was given the chance to shine alongside Anthony Mackie (the best the Flag Smasher had been up until this point). That villain's group was a disappointment throughout, but at least Marvel Studios gave her some depth here.

Throw in a killer - literally! - ending, and this was a great episode of the Disney+ series.

Our Review: "The Whole World Is Watching" finds a quintessential balance of action and character moments, putting the spotlight on the excellent Wyatt Russell's John Walker and what it means to be Captain America in today's world.

2. "One World, One People"

The finale wasn't to everyone's liking, and that's understandable. Things wrapped up far too quickly for some characters (that Power Broker reveal sucked), and it felt like this episode needed at least another 10 minutes or so to really let that final act breathe. Bucky, in particular, deserved better because while we didn't expect to see him make all those amends, he did so far too quickly!

Still, that U.S. Agent reveal was awesome, and most importantly, so was Sam Wilson's evolution into a new role. That all worked wonderfully, and his speech cemented him as the MCU's new Captain America. That was the goal this series set out to achieve, and it did so in an effective, memorable way.

Carl Lumbly also deserves a special mention for that fantastic final scene in the museum with Mackie.

Our Review: The Falcon and The Winter Soldier's finale ushers in a bold new era of storytelling for the Marvel Cinematic Universe in an episode that sees Anthony Mackie firmly establish himself as the deserving new face of this shared world.

1. "The Star-Spangled Man"

This is perhaps the closest The Falcon and The Winter Soldier got to perfection. With the two leads finally together, the chemistry between Sam and Bucky was really allowed to come to the forefront. With heaps of humour and action, this really did feel like a full-blown Marvel Studios movie.

It didn't gloss over the issues Malcolm Spellman put the spotlight on in his premiere, but added to that by further exploring its leads and the new Captain America's place in this shared world.

We'd have loved to see more of this tone in the rest of the show; instead, there were just glimpses of it. We can only hope that Michael Kastelein gets to return to the MCU down the line.

Our Review: The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is the Marvel Cinematic Universe at its best with this second episode. Michael Kastelein's script tackles timely issues, while making Wyatt Russell's John Walker a character we can't wait to see more of.

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119 Comments

1 2 3

RedHood92 - 6/14/2021, 3:35 AM

Kumkani - 6/14/2021, 3:35 AM

That might have been overdoing it a bit. The speech was already feeling a little too stage-y and like an obvious entire-story-has-to-stop-for-this kind of monologue, even the moment called for it. I liked the moment but they could have either cut the speech in half or allowed to have been a back and forth between him and the politicians.

ShimmyShimmyYA - 6/14/2021, 4:35 AM

@TyrantBossMedia - no one said that why are you so miserable all the time

regularmovieguy - 6/14/2021, 6:22 AM

@TyrantBossMedia

Bro, that speech was the most milquetoast answer they could’ve given. If you were offended by that, check yourself.

Spike101 - 6/14/2021, 6:39 AM

@TyrantBossMedia - they are all quiet now. I couldn’t believe how long they dragged that out for, just really cheesy….

Fares - 6/14/2021, 3:42 AM

I get that Captain America is a great medium to address America's problems (duh it's in the title). But as a non American fan, I always appreciated that Steve Rogers cap was an international ideal, not only an american one. And I'd like Sam to continue that to an extent, because honestly I could barely care about this.

SpaceAgent - 6/14/2021, 5:18 AM

@Fares - Yes. This.

heyy1 - 6/14/2021, 6:02 AM

@Fares - facts

Fogs - 6/14/2021, 11:09 AM

@Fares - Yeap. Tks for that.

It was hard enough to sell a "Captain America" character to general audiences around the world. That was a feat for Marvel Studios.

I was there in a 2012 theater when I saw people moved by Steve Rogers' good character and story, not "that Captain America hero", so to speak. And they nailed it.

LEVITIKUZ - 6/14/2021, 3:46 AM

Of course the Marvel Studios shut it down

Marvel Studios makes bipartisan movies with contracts from the military who must approve of the scripts

It’s why I [frick]ing dislike The Winter Soldier because the Winter Soldier has it that having Star Destroyers in the air that can showcase everyone on the ground & kill them is only bad if they are in the hands of Nazis like Hydra

Everyone loves to pretend Disney is this far left company when they even donated to Donald Trump.

They are cowards & we shouldn’t expect any meaningful political messages from MCU films & shows

Vigor - 6/14/2021, 3:49 AM

@LEVITIKUZ - "It’s why I [frick]ing dislike The Winter Soldier because the Winter Soldier has it that having Star Destroyers in the air that can showcase everyone on the ground & kill them is only bad if they are in the hands of Nazis like Hydra"

That's definitely not the message

LEVITIKUZ - 6/14/2021, 3:51 AM

By the way, Captain Falcon giving a speech to politicians was so cringe inducing

You think his speech would make Mitch McConnell realize he shouldn’t be a [frick]ing douchebag? Some of these politicians don’t give 2 shits about the people they serve

LEVITIKUZ - 6/14/2021, 3:54 AM

@Vigor - then tell me, why did we need Hydra to be in SHIELD? Why couldn’t SHIELD just be corrupt? Why couldn’t politicians just be corrupt? Why tie them to the Nazi organization?

Grant it, there are politicians who without question share ideologies of that as Nazis but the point im making is just because you are a douchebag doesn’t mean you are a Nazi which the MCU retcon every piece of shit politician up until that point to be a member of hydra as if bad people don’t exist because they are just bad people

DaHyro - 6/14/2021, 3:55 AM

@LEVITIKUZ - I generally agree with you, but Steve was definitely not okay with SHIELD/the government using the Helicarriers. He probably wouldn’t have done anything about it, so you do have a point lol

I’d say Black Panther is the best MCU film when it comes to political messages, as I think it was a great exploration of racial issues.

LEVITIKUZ - 6/14/2021, 3:58 AM

@DaHyro - exactly. I recognize that Steve didn’t like the helicarriers but he never once suggested to Fury to shut the project down or do anything until the third act simply because hydra had control of them

1 2 3

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FALCON AND WINTER SOLDIER Star Anthony Mackie Wanted To Reference "Make America Great Again" In Finale Speech

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