D23 revealed a lot of juicy information to the fans who were in attendance at the live event. Fans of Disney were eating well, and those there for its MCU reveals were still riding the high from last month, which not only gave us a ton of updates for all the upcoming Marvel projects but also gave us the trailer for Captain America: Brave New World.
Footage that was revealed at D23 delved deeper into the teaser for the film, which blended aspects of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. The teaser not only gave audiences a better look at Harrison Ford’s Thunderbolt Ross all Hulked out, but it also delved deeper into the role Sabra would play in the story.
The controversy around Sabra has not deterred her involvement in Captain America: Brave New World
A lot of criticism surrounded the inclusion of Sabra, an Israeli superhero in the MCU, in the light of real-world events at the time of her announcement. The character was set as a hero with connections to Mossad, something that more than a few members of the audience considered to be insensitive.
The character had since been revamped, as has most of the film. Reports have confirmed that the character will be portrayed as a former Black Widow, as a direct consequence of the Red Room being brought down by Scarlett Johanson‘s Natasha Romanoff before the events of Captain America: Civil War.
Captain America: Brave New World at #D23Expo. https://t.co/DCiq36dBxP pic.twitter.com/11paDxd6Q9
— A STARK CONTRAST. (@strkcntrst) August 10, 2024
The footage shown at D23 revealed that Sabra, played by Shira Haas, will serve as a close confidant of Thunderbolt Ross, someone the character trusts enough to have present in a private conversation with Sam Wilson, while his own cabinet is not privy to what is being discussed. As far as the extended teaser is concerned, the character might have her own agenda under the US government.
It is odd that Sabra is a Black Widow, but not part of the Thunderbolts
Among the ranks of the Thunderbolts are Yelena, who is a former Black Widow, Taskmaster, who served at the behest of the Red Room, and Red Guardian, who had connections with the organization that was allied with or under the Red Room. However, despite this team having US Agents and Valentina Allegra de Fontaine among its ranks, it is odd that Sabra is not invited to join the team.
Given that the team operates as a task force that is on the US Government’s payroll, Sabra’s absence from the team despite being such a close confidant to the President of the United States hints at something bigger afoot. Given that there are other loose ends from Falcon and the Winter Soldier, such as Sharon Carter as the Powerbroker, Captain America might be embroiled in too convoluted a game to be solved in a satisfactory manner before the events of Avengers: Doomsday.
Captain America: Brave New World hits theatres on February 14th, 2025.
