The dynamic between Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie wasn’t highlighted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe until Captain America: Civil War, but it was clear the franchise had stumbled onto something special when the frosty relationship between Steve Rogers’ best friends turned into a great recurring gag.
It ended up serving as the catalyst for an entire TV show, with their bromance being given ample time to blossom in the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame. Now that they weren’t competing for the attention and affection of Cap, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier set them off on an adventure of their very own.
In a roundabout way, Stan revealed to Vanity Fair that he thinks Tom Holland was partly responsible for Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes becoming the MCU’s most prominent bickering odd couple, thanks to Civil War‘s epic airport smackdown.
“It was so weird and wild because it was such a funny moment with sort of him [Holland] catching the arm and the punch and everything, Anthony and I sort of having to come together over… Basically, Anthony and I got a show because of Tom Holland, that’s what I’m realizing as I’m talking. Which is something I’d really hate for him to know. Tom, that is. Not Anthony.”
Based on his reputation and history for trolling the Spider-Man star at every opportunity, Mackie isn’t going to credit Holland for what ultimately became The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which then led directly to the fourth standalone Captain America movie.
See Marvel Movies on Apple TV+, Prime Video, Hulu
That doesn’t make it any less interesting, though, when the MCU would have turned out very differently had Sam and Bucky not been forced to try and take down the debuting web-slinger as part of the Team Iron Man vs. Team Cap battle.
This article includes affiliate links, which may provide small compensation to We Got This Covered.
