Sam Wilson Captain America: Who He Is and Who Plays Him

Sam Wilson is a US veteran who counsels other former soldiers, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe credits him first as the Falcon and later as Captain America. Anthony Mackie plays him, and Mackie's name appears in the cast credits of five of Sam's seven films, which answers who plays Sam Wilson. The credits use three forms of the name: "Sam Wilson / Falcon" in captain america the winter soldier, ant-man 2015 and captain america civil war, "Sam Wilson / The Falcon" in avengers age of ultron, and "Sam Wilson / Captain America" in captain america brave new world.

Before Sam, the shield belonged to Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans, a frail Brooklyn man turned into a super soldier in captain america the first avenger (2011), directed by Joe Johnston. Sam meets him in The Winter Soldier (2014), where Rogers works for S.H.I.E.L.D. in Washington, D.C. and is still adjusting to the modern world, and the two become friends. For the hero Sam inherits from, see the profile of steve rogers.

Sam appears in seven films, in release order: The Winter Soldier (2014), Age of Ultron (2015), Ant-Man (2015), Civil War (2016), avengers infinity war (2018), avengers endgame (2019) and Brave New World (2025). Chronological order puts the same seven films in the same sequence, so you can follow his arc straight through, and the marvel movies in order guide shows where they sit among the rest of the saga.

Sam's closest ties are with Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes and Joaquin Torres, and his sharpest conflict is with President Thaddeus Ross. Rogers is the friend who draws him into the Avengers story in The Winter Soldier and who passes him the shield in Endgame. Barnes is the shared mission between them: Sam and Rogers search for him after Hydra's fall, they hold him in custody in the Ant-Man post credit scene, and in Civil War Rogers protects him after a bombing in Vienna is pinned on him. You can read more on bucky barnes.

Joaquin Torres, played by Danny Ramirez, is Sam's partner in Brave New World and the new Falcon. Isaiah Bradley, played by Carl Lumbly, is the former super soldier Sam defends after the White House attack, and Isaiah is cleared of blame by the end. Samuel Sterns, played by Tim Blake Nelson, is the mind controlling scientist behind it, and from prison he warns Sam that threats from other worlds are coming.

Ross, played by Harrison Ford, is the film's central rivalry. He is secretly dying and has been taking pills that fill his body with gamma radiation, and he becomes the Red Hulk when Sterns exposes him in public. Sam talks him down by reminding him of cherry blossom visits with his daughter Betty. John Walker, played by Wyatt Russell, belongs to the Thunderbolts story rather than to Sam's film arc.

In my opinion, Sam's best moments show a hero who wins by persuasion where Steve Rogers wins by endurance. The strongest is Brave New World, where he ends a Red Hulk rampage in the White House by talking Ross down with a memory of cherry blossoms and his daughter Betty. In my view it suits a hero who began as a counselor for ex-soldiers.

Second is the Endgame handover, because it is the biggest promotion in the saga: an old Rogers gives up the shield and Sam becomes Captain America. Third is the Winter Soldier set piece in which he and Rogers swap targeting chips on two S.H.I.E.L.D. carriers so they fire on one another. It shows Sam as a full partner, not a sidekick.

Perhaps the most debated question is why Sam and not Bucky. The handover itself does not explain the choice, but the earlier films build a case. Sam helps Rogers take down Hydra, sides with him in Civil War and shelters Vision and Wanda before the battle of Wakanda, while Barnes chooses cryogenic sleep in Wakanda after Civil War. So, if you want one film to sell you on Sam, start with The Winter Soldier and finish with Brave New World.