"Heartbroken" Incredible Hulk Star Finally Returns in Captain America: Brave New World: What That Could Mean for the MCU

What does Tim Blake Nelson's return as The Leader in Captain America 4 mean for the future of the MCU?

By Kofi Outlaw

The Incredible Hulk star Tim Blake Nelson recently made headlines by revealing how he was "heartbroken when it seemed I wasn't going to come back as The Leader, but now I'm glad it took 16 years because it's made the character more interesting." Years of tangled rights issues with The Hulk franchise kept Marvel Studios from launching the obvious sequel that would've brought Nelson's Leader back for his big debut, stranding his character (and other Incredible Hulk supporting cast) in MCU limbo for years. Now, Tim Blake Nelson is finally making his return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the upcoming Captain America: Brave New World, where his character, Samuel Sterns, will be revealed as  "The Leader," one of Marvel's most nefarious mastermind villains. 

The climax of Incredible Hulk (2008) showed how a sample of Bruce Banner's gamma-infused blood spilled on Sterns' head beginning his transformation into a gamma-powered intellect. What Sterns has been up to since then is unknown – and none of the public marketing for Captain America: Brave New World (so far) has provided any insight as to what he looks like now, or what his master plan is for the MCU, and the various factions all vying for power. 

For his part, Nelson has already teased that "The Marvel team has come up with a really interesting explanation—revelation, I should say, as to what he's been up to for 16 years and why." Even without knowing the larger plans for The Leader's MCU arc, it's already clear that the villain will be putting a well-thought-out plan in motion during Captain America: Brave New World. But to what ultimate end? 

What The Leader's Role In Captain America: Brave New World Could Mean For the MCU

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(Photo: Marvel Studios)

The details about Captain America 4's story that we know involve Captain America/Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) inadvertently helping to kick off a new arms race, when he recovers of the sample of the metal Adamantium from the body of the corpse of the Celestial that died mid-birth in Marvel's Eternals. As Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross tries to cement his presidency on the foundation of worldly unity and prosperity, an unseen hand begins throwing things into chaos – and that hand most likely belongs to The Leader. 

So far, details of The Leader's plan arguably include all of the following: 

  • Brainwashing former super-soldier Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumby) into committing an assassination attempt or some kind of disruptive act of terrorism against the government. 
  • Injecting President Ross with the gamma-radiation serum that transforms him into Red Hulk. 
  • Coordinating with or employing organizations like the Serpent Society to carry out the violent attacks and/or heists associated with his plan. 

That's a lot of moving pieces – but what's the end goal? 

What Is The Leader's Master Plan for the MCU? 

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(Photo: Marvel Studios, Marvel Comics)

Ever since Captain America 4 was announced, there has been fan speculation that the film will be another game-changing event like Captain America: The Winter Soldier with its reveal of Hydra's infiltration, and SHIELD's collapse. This time, however, it's theorized that The Leader could be trying to formally usher in the era of the "supervillain," by enhancing or upgrading a targeted list of individuals and/or organizations to help shift the balance of global power. Hence the title of the film. Theories go so far as The Leader creating new gamma and/or super-serum power-players; enhancing the technology of crooks and gangsters to create a new era of street-level supervillains; possibly unleashing some kind of general mutation wave that could ripple into the X-Men franchise's pond. Given The Leader's level of intellect, possibly all of the above. 

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That's about all we can glean from speculation at this point; answering what The Leader hopes to gain from this level of scheming and world-shifting is hard to know – especially in the context of an MCU "Multiverse Saga" storyline. There is some evidence that whatever happens in Brave New World leads directly into Thunderbolts; that film's preview footage has hinted at the group having to pull off a mission at a facility that could be hiding an even greater game-changing superpower coming to the MCU. If that's also part of The Leader's larger plan, we could quickly start to see the villain taking up the role of a "big bad," whose presence touches multiple movie and TV projects. 

Captain America: Brave New World Cast & Crew

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(Photo:

Captain America: Brave New World's trailer has people talking.

- Marvel Entertainment)

Captain America: Brave New World will star Howard Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America, Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres/ alcon, Carl Lumbly as Isaiah Bradley, Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns/The Leader, Harrison Ford as General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, and Shira Haas as Sabra. Xosha Roquemore, Rosa Salazar, and Giancarlo Esposito will play Seth Voelker/Sidewinder recently being added to the film in reshoots. Captain America: Brave New World is directed by Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox, Luce), with a script from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier showrunner Malcolm Spellman, as well as Dalan Musson and Matthew Orton.

Captain America: Brave New World is currently scheduled to be released exclusively in theaters on February 14, 2025.

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