Avengers: Endgame has been out for a week now, but I still love and respect you enough to let you know there are MAJOR SPOILERS in this post. So, if you still haven't seen the film yet, go see it ASAP and come back to enjoy the beauty that is this story later.
Okay — for those of us remaining — we already know all about the sweet ending moment between Captain America and Falcon.
But — just to recap — after defeating Thanos and mourning Tony Stark's death, Cap goes back in time to return all of the Infinity Stones...but then decides to remain in the past and live out his life with Peggy. It's a beautiful ending and a reminder that absolutely no one will ever love you like Cap loves Peggy.
ANYWAY, a very elderly Cap meets up with Falcon and Bucky in the last minutes of the film to reveal his choice to them, and he passes the shield and general mantle of his "Captain America" brand onto a surprised, emotional, and VERY deserving Falcon (fight me).
WELL, it turns actor Anthony Mackie was JUST as surprised to learn about his character's ending as Falcon was and, as if by fate, he learned this info from none other than former Mr. Captain America himself, Chris Evans.
"We were at his house and Chris goes, 'You excited?' And I go, 'What are you talking about?'" Mackie told IMDB in a recent interview. "He goes, 'You don't know?!' And he jumps up, runs out of the room, and comes back in with the script."
"We cried. We drank. We laughed," Mackie said. "I am very happy I got that moment with Chris, for him to not only pass me the shield, but to tell me it was happening."
And, because that story alone wasn't emotional enough, Mackie went on to discuss just how much being the new Cap means to him, and the general vibe on-set when he shot the scene.
"It means a lot to me for my sons to see Captain America as a black dude, and for me to be that dude for my sons," Mackie said. "So that moment was not just, 'Hey, we're acting.' It was more, and then they cut and I cried. And Chris cried. And the Russos cried. And everyone cried. It was an emotional day."
So uh, yeah...just when I thought I was emotionally stable again after seeing this movie, I'm now sobbing profusely at my work desk. I think I speak for everyone when I say we salute you, Captain America, forever and always.
