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Captain America: Brave New World is in theaters now and the world is watching. Not just in a literal way, mind you (though Variety predicts a $95M box office opening), but in the sense that this is the first return to what many consider the MCU canon, after 2024's successful but wildly different Deadpool & Wolverine took us on an R-Rated trip through the multiverse. So how exactly did Sam Wilson's first cinematic outing as Captain America go?

Well, that's what we're here to tell you.

Join us as we journey toward Captain America: Brave New World ending explained. Though it should be quite obvious by now, we're getting into heavy spoiler territory here, so this is your final chance to go see the movie before finishing the article. Otherwise, read boldly on, dear reader, and welcome back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe you're familiar with.

Who is the Captain America: Brave New World villain?

If you've only been paying attention to this movie's promos, then you might assume the central villain is Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt Ross, AKA Red Hulk, AKA President of the United States. And though the movie opens on the fact that Ross has a lot to hide (we see him taking some mysterious white pills at the very beginning), we'll come to learn that Ross is only a pawn in a larger game. 

At the beginning of the movie, Ross makes clear he wants two things to happen - first, he wants Sam Wilson to reform the Avengers. Second, he wants a treaty between the US and the world's major powers that guarantees they will all share the newly discovered element of adamantium, a highly malleable but nigh-indestructible metal forged by the transformed body of the Celestial Tiamut, from the end of The Eternals. 

Unfortunately, both of Ross's goals face massive obstacles. Firstly, a Winter Soldier-esque mind control device forces Isaiah Bradley to attempt an assassination of the current president, to which Ross responds by throwing Bradley in jail, putting him at odds with Sam. Second, the Prime Minister of Japan learns that a US-backed mercenary group attempted to steal their first reserve of adamantium. And though he doesn't react well to either situation, Thaddeus Ross is actually innocent in both cases.

In reality, they were both orchestrated by Samuel Sterns, the gamma-radiated supergenius we met all the way back in 2008's The Incredible Hulk.

During all that time, the Hulkblood-infected mastermind has been kept in a secret government prison by Ross, and is now making his move to take revenge. After driving a wedge between Ross and both of his tenuous allies (Captain America and Japan), Sterns sets Ross on a course that could well turn into a full-out war.

What happens in the Captain America: Brave New World ending?

Knowing that Ross will respond to the possible dissolution of a treaty by heading to the source of adamantium itself, Sterns orchestrates events so that both Japanese and American forces are set to collide at Celestial Island (that is, the lifeless body of Tiamut that appeared in the Indian Ocean). Utilizing more of his mind control tricks, Sterns makes two US pilots go rogue, targeting Japanese warships and nearly starting an international conflict.

Fortunately, Captain America and the new Falcon, AKA Joaquín Torres, are there to intercept the rogue US planes. They manage to avoid any loss of life on either the US or Japanese side, but in doing so, precede two dangerous events. Firstly, the scuffle triggers a strange transformation starts to overcome President Ross, who himself is on the US aircraft carrier. And though he ultimately doesn't transform into the monster we all know is coming, the second event goes horrible: outside the craft, Joaquin Torres is shot down and seriously wounded. Though he is rescued from the ocean, his condition is critical, and in an operating room hours later, it's uncertain whether or not he'll survive.

What and who are the big Captain America: Brave New World surprises in the movie?

It's here that Sam Wilson finds himself at his lowest point in the movie, doubting that he was the right person to take on the Captain America mantle. Fortunately, though, someone who understands the role as much as he does is there to console him. You guessed it, Bucky Barnes appears in Captain America: Brave New World, offering Sam some inspiration before announcing that he has a "fundraising dinner" to get to.

Apparently Bucky is running for Congress? We imagine that will factor into Thunderbolts* somehow.

His confidence restored, Sam dives back into his mission of apprehending Samuel Sterns. Before he can, though, Sterns turns himself into the US government. It sounds strange, yeah, but being closer to President Ross means that Sterns can initiate his Plan B, his second shot at revenge after starting a war between the US and Japan failed.

At a White House press conference soon after Sterns's arrest, Sterns hacks into the PA system, playing a private recording between himself and Ross. Turns out, Sterns is the one that gave Ross those white pills from the beginning, which Ross believes are staving off a heart defect that threatened to kill him. In reality, though, the pills were laced with gamma radiation, and with the recording played and Ross's treachery exposed, the pills' aim is accomplished. Thaddeus Ross becomes the Red Hulk.

How will Sam Wilson beat Red Hulk?

Though Sam Wilson has not taken the supersoldier serum, his Wakandan-built wings and vibranium shield are enough to keep the Red Hulk busy and, most importantly, to drive him away from innocent civilians. The monster of Ross's rage gives Sam quite a beating, though Sam is able to give some back thanks to the kinetic absorption abilities of his vibranium wings. Unfortunately, this tech only lasts so long after repeated blows form an actual Hulk, and Sam loses his shield mid-battle. At the fight's climax, Sam Wilson stands against Red Hulk, seriously wounded and armed with only his mind.

Thankfully, it's all he needs.

Sam speaks to the man he knows has been inside the Red Hulk this entire fight. He asks Thunderbolt Ross to prove that he can be more than just a warrior, appealing to the ideals that made him want to rekindle the Avengers in the first place. And in a last, desperate effort, Sam reminds him of his daughter, Betty, who's approval has been a major factor in Ross's attempt to change. Just like Bruce Banner before him, Betty Ross is enough of an inspiration to calm this Hulk's rage: Thaddeus Ross returns to human form, and the crisis is averted.

Time passes, and the world rights itself. Isaiah Bradley is released from prison and exonerated. President Ross cops to the crimes he committed to both save himself and get into the highest office in the nation, landing himself in the Marvel superprison known as The Raft. Sam goes to visit him in his cell later, informing him that the adamantium treaty with Japan (and other nations) that he worked so hard to build has been ratified. It's even been named after him. And to cap it all off, Sam has brought a guest to see him: his daughter, Betty Ross.

Were there any Captain America: Brave New World deaths?

For a movie that talks a lot about war, very few major characters actually die. One rarely-seen Sergeant Payumo (played by Alan Boell) does meet his end at the hands of Sterns' mind control device, but other than that, there's really only one major death: that is, the demise of Commander Dennis Dunphy, played by William Mark McCullough. 

A soldier pal of Cap's, Dunphy is the first person to discover that the pills Ross has been taking are irradiated. He's about to call our heroes and inform them of just that, but Samuel Sterns catches up to him first. Dressed very much like the Uni-Bomber, Stearns plays a high-frequency tone that upsets Dunphy's equilibrium. Then, in a particularly cruel moment, Strens ups the noise to a frequency that is capable of stopping a human heart, ending Dunphy in a brutal (if bloodless) way.

I should also point out that, before the movie is done, it appears that Sam's loyal robot companion Redwing has been destroyed in the line of duty. That's a topic for a different piece, though.

Who were the Captain America: Brave New World survivors?

Most of the heroes (and even a lot of the villains!) make it to the end of Captain America: Brave New World. Sam Wilson, Isaiah Bradley, Thaddeus Ross, Samuel Sterns, and even Joaquin Torres (whose life is saved on the operating table) are still kicking by the time the credits roll. In fact, a ton of characters we didn't even get to talk about survive the film, such as SERPENT's Sidewinder, Copperhead, and Diamondback, Ross's chief of security (and ex-Black Widow) Ruth Bat-Seraph, Sam's White House contact Leila Taylor, and every single person at the White House during Ross's Hulk-out.

With a survival rate this high, poor Commander Dunphy really must've had some bad luck

Are there any Captain America: Brave New World post-credits scenes?

Of course you knew that the end of a Marvel movie is never exactly the end of a Marvel movie. After sitting through the credits, moviegoers got to see a post-credit sequence that, apparently, takes place directly after Sam's chat with Ross in The Raft. Elsewhere in the infamous prison, Samuel Sterns waits in a very similar reinforced jail cell.

While Sam's exact reasons for visiting Sterns are unclear, Sterns has a message for the new Captain America. He points out that, though Sam's bravery may be enough to protect his world against its own, internal threats, there are more worlds out there, and even possible new team of Avengers (which Sam seems poised to build) may not be enough to defend against them.

"We'll see what happens," Sterns tells him, "When you have to protect this place from The Others."

Who are those Others? Though we expect to find out very soon, that answer doesn't come from the Captain America: Brave New World ending.

Will there be a Captain America: Brave New World sequel?

That's a question for Kevin Feige & Co.. At the moment, no new Captain America sequel (which would be Captain America 5) has been announced, though the very end of the movie did confirm that "Captain America will return." Don't think of that as some mysterious tease, though; we know that Anthony Mackie will be picking up the shield and donning the wings again as Sam Wilson in Avengers: Doomsday.

Looks like Sam really will have to build that new team, huh?

How many end credits are in Captain America: Brave New World?

There's only one end-credits scene after Captain America: Brave New World, and it comes all the way after the credits are over. So, if the credits roll on a reinvigorated Captain America, newly appointed Falcon, and reunited Ross family and you find that you have to pee, go ahead and rush to the bathroom. We think you'll make it back in time for Samuel Sterns' big moment.

After all, Hulk-inducing monster pills are hard to control, but a full bladder? That's something even Captain America would have to obey.

Captain America: Brave New World is in theaters now.

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters