Marvel made it clear Wednesday that they are ready to shake up the comic book world with major changes to some of their most popular characters.
In a post published on the Marvel website, it was revealed that the former Captain America character no longer has the strength to continue on with his heroic duties.
“Robbed of his superior strength and vitality, Steve Rogers must surrender his blues for a sturdy cane,” the post reads. “The old maxims hold true: If dead men declared the war and old men talk about it, a young man must rise and continue the fight.”
In other words, Captain America’s longtime sidekick Sam Wilson will now be stepping up to take over as Captain America.
The character Sam Wilson, who is also known as The Falcon, will become the new Black Captain America.
The big switch will only have an impact on the comic book series for now, but it could spell out good news for Anthony Mackie, the actor who took on the role as The Falcon in the 2014 movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
So far, however, there have not been any discussions about taking the character switch to the big screen.
Actor Chris Evans will still be taking on the role of Captain America in Avengers: Age of Ultron, which is scheduled to hit theaters next year.
Recently, Marvel made another major character change.
Only a few days ago, the comic book giant announced that Thor, the god of thunder, will be portrayed by a woman in an upcoming comic book series.
According to Marvel comic editor Tom Brevoort, fans should stay on their toes because the changes are expected to keep coming.
“We’re not anywhere near finished,” Brevoort said. “Change is one of the watchwords of the Marvel universe, so there are even more startling surprises to come.”
While there has not been tons of backlash aimed at the new Black Captain America, the transition from one race to another didn’t go quite as smoothly on the big screens with other Marvel characters.
There was an onslaught of criticism on social media when Black actor Michael B. Jordan was cast to play the traditionally white character Johnny Storm, who is also known as the Human Torch.
Similarly, an online petition was launched when Idris Elba signed on to play the role of Heimdall in Thor: The Dark World.
Despite the racist backlash, Elba was praised for his performance in the film, and other Hollywood heavy-hitters believe Jordan will make a great Human Torch.
Evans, who played the role of the Human Torch in the past before moving on to become Captain America, said he was excited to learn that Jordan would be taking over the role.
“It’s so funny, you almost feel precious over the role that you don’t want someone else to do it,” Evans told the New York Daily News in March. “But when you hear someone phenomenal is doing it, it’s very exciting like you almost can’t wait.”
The Fantastic Four reboot is expected to hit theaters on June 19, 2015.
