Anthony Mackie, the soldier, the Falcon, the MCU’s most iconic shield bearer, was almost never going to portray Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Early in his formative years, a game surprised him so much that it took a moment to decide to throw in the towel and go for the safest career choice. However, in hindsight, the story is told more as a fun encounter than one that could have left him with a severe concussion.
Also read: ‘We own your a**. Come Into The Movie’: Anthony Mackie Reveals Marvel Studios Is Extremely Aggressive To Keep Cameos A Secret In MCU Projects
Anthony Mackie recalls a life-changing moment in D1 football
Division I football is recognized as the highest level of college football in the United States, consisting of the top schools in the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). Anthony Mackie, the MCU’s resident Falcon and its current Captain America, was part of this division during his college years when he suddenly discovered a life-changing epiphany in the field. On a talk show, Mackie relives his days and talks about the incident that set him back from the glory of an NFL career.
“I got drafted into D1…and I was a free safety – 275.8% body fat, pure chalk, all day – and coach D Back walks up to me and he says: “The second hole will open. The running back will arrive, and when he arrives, you will take his head off. Do. Go back 13 meters, break the helmet and wait for the ball.
The ball arrives, the line changes, I see the hole open, I explode – at 13 meters, pow! Pure muscle. What I didn’t see was the Pulling Guard crossing the line. I’ve never seen a white guy that big in my life. He punched me, pushed me back 5 meters, stepped on my chest and continued. I saw the Running Back pass in front of me, I undid my helmet and gave up.
To read also: “It’s radically different from what Steve Rogers treated”: Captain America 4 Director Warns Anthony Mackie Led Movie Will Create Massive MCU Spinoffs
The story ends with his decision to become a field actor on that fateful day after the turbulent encounter. While the player’s name has not been released, the industry certainly owes the Pulling Guard a debt for pushing Mackie back just enough so he could walk off the court and into Hollywood’s list of A-listers.
Anthony Mackie’s Current Trajectory and Future in the MCU
The actor made his debut in the best Marvel spy action thriller of all time, i.e. Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The film not only resurrected Bucky, but involved some of the best action sequences, hired Nick Fury in all-secret ops mode, closed the Peggy Carter chapter, and witnessed one of Bucky’s most iconic costumes. Captain America. The film’s politics and raw, tortured brilliance spawned an Avenger, the Falcon who seized the opportunity and aligned himself with the Captain without hesitation.
Read also: Marvel theory – Captain America: New World Order is a multiverse movie that will bring back Chris Evans as a variant of Steve Rogers
Having spent years alongside Steve Rogers, his loyalty to him and righteous conscience made him the good man of Bucky’s perfect soldier and as such fulfills Abraham Erskine’s vision of what America’s hope during the war should represent – “Stay who you are, not a perfect soldier, but a good man.” Now that Mackie’s Sam Wilson has come to terms with Steve Rogers’ absence from the battlefield and has finally taken the shield, the era of the new Captain America begins with a new world order (pun intended).
Source: The Late Late Show with James Corden
