Anthony Mackie couldn’t be happier to star in the upcoming “Captain America: Brave New World,” but he’s also willing to admit working in the MCU has its difficulties. RadioTimes reports that the “Twisted Metal” actor talked about feeling hemmed in while working on Marvel projects. But Mackie also understands that comes with the territory, thanks to the sheer glut of the Marvel’s comic book backlog.
When asked if working on something like “Twisted Metal” differs from an MCU production, Mackie replied, “I would say the Marvel thing is completely different, just because it’s such a space of controlled entertainment. Like, there’s only so much you can do. There’s only so much creativity you can bring to the table, because Stan Lee gave us so much content.”
The actor continued, “Whereas with [“Twisted Metal”], it was like, ‘There’s a guy and a girl… go!’ So we were really able to build the world around it.” Originally airing on Peacock in the US, “Twisted Metal” just premiered on the UK’s Paramount Plus service. Based on the video game series of the same name with a loose premise of people battling each other in cars, the series creators had a lot of creative freedom to build their own story. They could introduce fan-favorite characters, like the deranged clown Sweet Tooth, but also take them in unexpected directions.
That’s a creative luxury MCU projects cannot afford if the studio wants stories to remain faithful to original comic storylines. “And that’s the hard thing about the Marvel universe,” Mackie went on. “It’s like, you can’t really go outside of the lines of those comic books.” He continued, “You know, when we introduced the Falcon, and the growth of the Falcon to Captain America, all of that had to coincide with what Stan had already gave us. So it’s an interesting juggle to be a part of that world. And this was more like, ‘Let’s just have fun and figure it out as we go.'”
In “Twisted Metal,” Mackie stars as John Doe, an amnesiac milkman offered the chance for a better life on one condition: he deliver a mystery package across a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Along the way, he must vie against various adversaries, like Sweet Tooth. Needless to say, a much different character than the MCU’s Sam Wilson, but Mackie will don the Captain America mantle soon enough.
“Captain America: Brave New World” hits theaters next year on February 14, 2025. As for “Twisted Metal,” US audiences may stream the series on Peacock.