Villains And Other Things I Want To See In CAPTAIN AMERICA 3!

Production is about to begin on untitled Captain America 3 in April, and a draft of the script is already in the hands of the directing-duo The Russo Brothers. The two have giving hints to what expect from the third installment, while keeping tight-lipped as part of the usual business of working for Marvel Studios. I have a few ideas of who the villains should be, and a bit of the direction of the film.


VILLAINS!

Let's get this out of the way first, the Russo Brothers have all but confirmed the return of Rumlow (Crossbones) and Bucky (Winter Soldier), so their inclusion won't be much of a surprise. We keep hearing an odd fan-demand to bring back The Red Skull, I'm actually shocked considering how many more rogues Rogers has in the waiting.

We already know that Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker will be making his screen debut in Avengers: Age of Ultron. What I can only assume will reveal a stronger HYDRA presence worldwide, and Captain America's futile hunt-down all the cells. I would love to see Strucker in the next film, but there are a few others that also deserve a shot at Rogers.

One villain I've been dying to jump into this franchise is Baron Zemo, both Heinrich and Helmunt. A piece of Winter Soldier concept teases the lineage, which used the mission codename Operation: Zemo. This was apart of one of the museum exhibits of Rogers' WWII exploits with The Howling Commandos. Something that could used in a flashback scene, setting-up Heinrich as the staunch supporter of HYDRA. While his son Helmunt is conflicted and less committed to the cause, leading him to possibly switch-sides. We know that James Gunn (Guardians of The Galaxy) has been pitching Marvel a Thunderbolts movie, and Zemo is a funding member of that team.

Baron Strucker's right-hand woman Ophelia Sarkissian (Madame Hydra) should obviously make an appearance, considering we really haven't seen any mainstream female villains in the Earthbound Marvel films. She's quite the piece-of-work, and could even have ties to Black Widow's dark and bloody past. A relentless female villain set within this franchise would be worthwhile, and I know the Russo Brothers could extensively beef-up her character to that on the level of Zemo, or Strucker.

Her Viper persona was up-for-grabs when Fox made The Wolverine, because of her inclusion in X-Men comics. Fox made her a mutant and basically never mentioned her as being a terrorist. However, her HYDRA roots, her image and actual name are at Marvel, so they can use her in the films if they have the desire to. Marvel included Strucker and Madame Hydra in their video game (Captain America: Super Soldier) tie-in for The First Avenger.

Doctor Faustus seems like a no-brainer, if Marvel decides to pursue Bucky's origin as brainwashed assassin for HYDRA.

RANDOM IDEAS!

An interesting ally from the past could possibly Joseph Chapman, better known as the modern era version of Union Jack. We know that the character exists in the cinematic universe, thanks to an Easter Egg in Iron Man 2. The British hero is racing alongside Tony Stark at the Grand Prix, and is listed among the drivers. One of the funding members of The Howling Commandos, would be Chapman's mentor James Falsworth. Who fought alongside Rogers during a majority of his WWII missions. Like Sharon, bringing-in someone like Union Jack could be an interesting nod to his past.

The locations have been a bit lacking for such a globetrotting character, but we understood that Winter Soldier was meant to be more of a personal American-set story of corruption. If HYDRA is back we need an even grander base of operations. One location from the comics could be extremely extravagant, that being the New Zealand mountain-face Gehenna. This stunning HYDRA base would allow for some arresting moments of sheer beauty, possibly lending itself to some very unique action sequences.

Steve Rogers needs to pass-on the mantle to either Bucky Barnes or Sam Wilson. Chris Evans' contract is almost over, and we suspect that like in the comics, we'll see another hero become Captain America.

CASTING SUGGESTIONS

Marvel Studios has their own way of casting the supporting characters, including their villains, but have listened to fans on a few occasions (placing Benedict Cumberbatch on their wish-list for Doctor Strange). However, I'm still standing-behind Mads Mikkelson (Pusher 2, Hannibal, The Hunt, King Arthur, Valhalla Rising,  Royal Affair) for Baron Helmut Zemo, Eva Green (300 Rise of An Empire, Kingdom of Heaven, Sin City 2, Casino Royale, Penny Dreadful) for Ophelia, Brendan Gleeson (The Guard, Gangs of New York, Braveheart, In Bruges, Calvary) for Doctor Faustus and Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey, The Guest) for Joseph Chapman (Union Jack).

Who Might Be In CAPTAIN AMERICA 3?

Captain America: The Winter Soldier will be released this weekend and Marvel already has set a release date Captain America 3. The third installment is set for May 6th, 2016 which will take place post-Avengers: Age of Ultron. Marvel has brought back the Russo brothers to director and are working the screenwriters on the script. Franchise writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus are also back.

It's crazy to think the third movie will actually be fifth Marvel movie with Steve Rogers. While it's hard to predict what is going to happen in the next film, we've had a few hints what could be in it. Of course, a lot of this could change in the next two years, but here's what we have so far. An easy assumption to make is that Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) and others will be returning.

VILLAINS: Thomas Kretschmann who plays Baron Wolfgang von Strucker, has confirmed there is future for his character within the MCU (post-Age of Ultron). This makes perfect sense as Strucker is the face of the modern-day version of HYDRA and could be the type of standout main villain the franchise needs. Baron Zemo has also been teased in Winter Soldier concept artwork (one of their off-screen WWII missions was titled "Operation: Zemo"), and at one time both were in early drafts of The First Avenger script.

Crossbones is expected to make a return, depending on the outcome of Winter Soldier. We've heard that Drew Pearce is considering making a Crossbones and Sin Marvel One-Shot. Sin just happens to be the daughter of The Red Skull and is the villainous partner of Crossbones. She eventually takes the place of her father as the new Red Skull. If Marvel decides bringing back the original Red Skrull might be too difficult to explain, this might be their second option.

Now that it's possible HYDRA could be resurrected, we might finally see Cap get a female villain, which is long overdue. Madame Hydra is a longstanding Cap villain, but has yet to make an appearance. While Fox has ownership of her other codename (Viper), the title of Madame Hydra and her real name of Opheila Sarkissian can be used in Marvel's films. Opheila is also Strucker's second in-command, making her more likely to be used.

While speaking with BadassDigest franchise writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus gave hints to where the third film could be going and reveal that another Ed Brubaker storyline might be used. Christopher Markus hinted at "psychotic '50s Captain America". William Burnside is so obsessed with Captain America he changes his name to Steve Rogers, gets plastic surgery and takes an untested "super-soldier serum". His story was recently explored in Ed Brubaker's run of Captain America and would see the mentally-damaged would-be hero exploited similar to how the Winter Solider, eventually becoming a villain known as The Grand Director (a version of the villain brainwashes Sharon Carter). I wouldn't be shocked if Bucky's puppet-masters end up making a return, or perhaps Strucker and HYDRA are involved. While it's an interesting concept the writers are known for giving false information, previously teasing Modok for the second Captain America film.

McFeely: Oh yeah, you can probably predict some of the threads we would like to pick up again that we’ve laid out there. And we always go back to the comics and dive back in and look at anything we’ve missed in the last few years that might be relevant.

Markus: We’ve definitely set out on a more realistic road in the Cap movies, you know. Even more grounded than in the other MCU movies. And so it kind of rules out Cap fighting the Dinosaur Man or something like that. There are some that aren’t gonna start and other ones that — I mean there’s a couple we’re playing with right now that we really want to take elements from. Which we’ll not reveal....(after pressured).. “psychotic ’50s Cap.”

UNION JACK: James Montgamary Falsworth was played by J.J. Feild and is apart of the Union Jack mantle (Cap's British counterpart and fellow Invader). Being apart of the Howling Commandos, it's possible Steve will try to track him down or his family members. He eventually passes the torch in the modern-era to Joey Chapman (revealed to exist in Iron Man 2 as a professional F1 racer). Having a British member of Cap's team could open it up a bit internationally, since we've been getting mostly American supporting characters. It makes perfect sense for a political thriller like Winter Solider, but adding international members to his new team could harken to his Howler days. Possibly taking outsiders (non-S.H.I.E.L.D. agents) as members of his new unit, very similar to Sam Wilson/Falcon. 

Considering the new series Agent Carter is on the way which will likely show the origins of S.H.I.E.L.D., including characters like Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper) and Falsworth (Feild) would make a lot of sense. Placing Union Jack in both the 40-50s and modern day could be very cool way to explore the tradition of passing down the heroic title. 

Since Bucky got a bit of resurrection in The Winter Soldier, it would be nice to see Marvel dust-off other members of the Howling Commandos. Even if it's just another Falsworth such as Jacqueline Falsworth/Spitfire or Joey Chapman who is given the title. Passing the title to a S.H.I.E.L.D. outsider could also make for an interesting way to introduce Joey as Union Jack. Making him a daredevil rogue, who is chosen for the heroic title rather than earning it. 

YELENA BELOVA/BLACK WIDOW II: Marvel's Kevin Feige has pretty much confirmed that Black Widow's stories will be told within other Marvel films. Stating she's pretty much stuck as a supporting character. Sharing major screentime in features like The Avengers, The Winter Soldier and Age of Ultron. Exploring her world in more depth could give us villain and Thunderbolt member Yelena Belova. The successor to the Black Widow title, is also known as Little Spider. Giving Natasha a rival/enemy of her own could be a way to give her own mini-adventure within a bigger story. 

DREAM CAST: CAPTAIN AMERICA 2

We've already been given hints that Captain America 2 will likely include Nick Fury, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Maria Hill as supporting characters. However, I feel like we could see a couple more staple characters from the Cap comics join the ranks of SHIELD possibly creating a new unit The Invaders. Not to mention some iconic villains that were supposed to be included in First Avenger. Those villains may or may not end up as wranglers of Winter Soldier.

RALPH FIENNES AS BARON WOLFGANG VAN STRUCKER

DANIEL BRUHL AS BARON ZEMO

RUTH WILSON AS MADAME HYDRA

MICHAEL EALY AS SAM WILSON/FALCON

ALICE EVE AS SHARON CARTER/AGENT 13

SULLIVAN STAPLETON AS JOEY CHAPMAN/UNION JACK

Rundown Of Possible Villains And Allies For Captain America 2

Marvel Studios is currently on a search to find a director to helm Captain America 2. As ten names are in the running but only four of those have been revealed. Kevin Feige, Chris Evans and the writers have stated that the sequel could be set in the present and may also include WWII flashbacks. There have been hints to what villains we can expect for the second installment but it's sort up in the air when it comes supporting heroes. Director Joe Johnston mentioned that Marvel could be saving Winter Soldier for his own spin-off, so he could be excluded until that happens. I've come up with some ideas of what the new additions should be along with previous hints to who the villains could be. I'm hoping that Marvel is smart enough to hold off bringing back Red Skull and Zola until later on in the franchise.


CAP'S NEW TEAM MEMBERS

SHARON CARTER: The niece (grand niece more likely) of Peggy Carter, Sharon was inspired by the WWII adventures of her Aunt Peggy alongside Captain America. This lead her decide to follow a similar path into the military eventually becoming an elite SHIELD Agent. While nothing has been confirmed there is speculation that Amanda Righetti was playing this character at the end of The First Avenger. I'm sure this will be cleared up in Avengers if not there is still hope that Sharon Carter will indeed end up Cap's new love interest. Perhaps also helping fill in the blanks of what happened to Peggy.

FALCON: Sam Wilson better known as The Falcon was a protege of sorts of Cap and the two had series of team-up comics. If Cap assembles a present time team I would expect Marvel to include one of Steve's best friends. I'm not sure if his costume from the comics would translate well but it could be interesting to see him re-imagined as a fighter pilot/SHIElD Agent. I could see the sequel becoming a buddy superhero film if Falcon does show up.

CONTESSA: The SHIELD agent was one of the few actual female characters without powers in the Marvel universe that's been able to stick around for decades. Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine would eventually exit SHIELD to become the new Madame Hydra replacing Viper. It would be interesting to see one of these agents turn out to be a sleeper for HYDRA or to for her to just switch sides over jealously or money. One of my biggest problems with the Marvel films is that they rarely have more than one female heroine in their films. Avengers is going to up that with Maria Hill and Black Widow in the same movie but it's unknown how much "action" Hill will actually see. This is another character that Amanda Righetti could have playing at the end of First Avenger.

UNION JACK: Joey Chapman is the current iteration of the British legacy hero Union Jack. Joey got his own Easter Egg in Iron Man 2 as one of the drivers listed in the race, so Marvel has established he exists in the film universe. The masked hero wears a bulletproof costume, is a knife/sword expert along with exceptional training in martial arts and other weapons (guns ect). James Montgomery Falsworth of the Howling Commandos played by JJ Field was also a shout-out to Union Jack in the First Avenger. Falsworth and his family took up the Union Jack persona before passing it down to Chapman. Union Jack is also a member of The Invaders and if we don't see the return of Howling Commandos in present time (ala Infinity Formula) the Invaders could be a great replacement team name.


VILLAINS

BARON ZEMO: Zemo had been rumored since the casting of First Avenger and it was revealed by the screenwriters that he indeed was in early drafts of the script. Zemo is easily Cap's second most popular villain and needs to be front and center if he is used. If he ends up in the sequel he's costume will need some remodeling and I doubt an actor will be hidden by a mask for the whole film.

BARON STRUCKER: Strucker has a rather large presence as the contemporary head of HYDRA being it's leader continuing the villainous terrorist group started by the Red Skull. We could see HYDRA becoming a world threat again with the classic green uniforms finally being used. I have to believe that both Strucker and Madame Hydra are strong candidates because they've been used in the Super Soldier video game and the current Avengers cartoon from Disney. Baron Strucker was also in the early drafts of the First Avenger script but was ultimately removed.

MADAME HYDRA: Madame Hydra is Strucker's second in command and the leader of the HYDRA sub-group The Serpent Seven. The role has been filled by many different women including Viper and former SHIELD agent Contessa Valentina Allegro De Fontaine. It could be an interesting to see SHIELD infiltrated by HYDRA having them trying to take the group down by covert methods.

A.I.M.: Writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus have mentioned their affection for Modok who is the leader of the arms dealing terrorist group A.I.M. They even stated they wanted to include Modok in a sequel having Peter Dinklage (Games of Thrones) in the role. A.I.M. could just as easily fit in Iron Man 3 depending on the direction Marvel is going for with that. If Modok does end up in the film they'd have to make him a lot more realistic to be taken seriously as a villan.

Fan Made Nick Fury Poster

Bond Inspired Fan Poster For SHIELD Movie

Marvel Studios Moving Forward With Captain America 2?

We recently heard news on movement on Iron Man 3 with Shane Black meeting with Marvel Studios. Now there is word from LatinoReview that Marvel is already working on Captain America 2. They've hired screenwriters Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus who worked on First Avenger. It's expected that the sequel would be set during present time and after the events of Avengers.

There are plenty of characters and villains to be explored in future films now that HYDRA will be established in First Avenger. This could be an excellent film to introduce Cap stables like Winter Soldier (Bucky), Union Jack (modern), Baron Zemo, Crossbones, Viper/Madame Hydra and Baron von Strucker. It would also be a great opportunity to bring in Sharon Carter and Falcon into the mix.

I wouldn't be shocked to see the SHIELD/Nicky Fury film end up being combined into the Captain America sequel and to be honest I think it would end up a stronger movie.

FIRST LOOK: J.J. Feild As Union Jack

Marvel/Paramount have released high-rez photos from Captain America. In the background in one of them is clearly J.J. Feild as Montgomery Falsworth/Union Jack. There has been talk that the Invaders would be incorporated into the Howling Commandos and Jack would be one of them. 

J.J. Feild Confirmed For Union Jack

ComicBookMovie was able to get a hold of copy of a call sheet for a Captain America scene. The sheet confirms actor J.J. Feild (Centurion) is playing Falsworth better known as Union Jack. It's expected Falsworth could be involved with S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Avengers movies. There has also been rumors of WWII set spin-off films I wouldn't be surprised to see an Invaders or Union Jack film in the future.

RUMOR: JJ Field Playing Union Jack In Captin America?

There are online rumors that British actor JJ Field (Centurion) could be playing the role of Union Jack in the upcoming Captain America. It would make sense that the character would be involved since the inclusion of The Invaders. Yet there is zero sources to back up this rumor.

What's Next For Marvel Studios?

Now that Marvel Studios has creative and financial backing from The Walt Disney Company. We could see the studio moving on more productions in the upcoming years. The amount of lesser known characters coming to the screen could increase in the future. Below are a few characters that Marvel Studios could end up developing into feature films. With their bloated lineup of Thor, Captain America and Avengers. They don't seem to be slowing down productions anytime soon. There is already rumored development on Iron Man 3, Hulk 2 and Nick Fury.



WAR MACHINE: Don Cheadle is more than likely returning in both Avengers and Iron Man 3. This could also mean Marvel Studios has promised Cheadle his own solo movie. Marvel has a great franchise in the Iron Man films so I could see War Machine being one of the major spin-offs.



BLACK WIDOW: Scarlett Johannson is already playing Natasha and could appear in a few other Marvel films before getting her own movie. Anytime you have a spy character in the Marvel universe it opens a lot of doors for other characters and villains to be showcased.



UNION JACK: A British character from the Marvel Universe who could make for an interesting straight up action film. The original Union Jack was a ally/partner of Captain American during WWII. The introduction of Union Jack could be in Captain America and then have the title passed down to the current Union Jack. I could see Daniel Craig in this role, he had been rumored for Thor at one point. Having Craig star and Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass) directing could be a great combination. Vaughn was previously attached to both X3 and Thor.


Daniel Craig as Union Jack


SHE-HULK: Jennifer Walters the cousin of Bruce Banner, is a lawyer who is also turned into a green hulk after exposure to gamma. A strong female superhero that could be perfect for adaptation. There could even be an introduction to Jennifer in Avengers or Hulk 2.


Rachel McAdams (Sherlock Holmes) as Jennifer Walters


SPIDER-WOMAN/ARACHNE: I'm not sure if this character conflicts with Sony's rights to Spider-Man, but it would make for an interesting action film. The story of Jessica Drew an ex-assassin for Hydra, who eventually joins S.H.I.E.L.D. and Avengers. Emily Blunt could be a good fit for the role. It would also make sense since Marvel was interested in her for Iron Man 2. She would test screen for Black Widow but had to decline the offer, because of her contract with 20th Century Fox.



Emily Blunt (Sunshine Cleaning) as Jessica Drew aka Spider-Woman/Arachne


HAWKEYE: A rumored addition to Iron Man 2 and eventual member of the Avengers. The lesser known archer is a prime candidate to get his own movie. Like War Machine and Black Widow, the character is a strong supporting character with a great backstory.


Bradley Cooper as Clint Barton aka Hawkeye/Ronin