Captain America 4’s Tim Blake Nelson Feels ‘Great Honor’ in Returning as The Leader

The Leader actor Tim Blake Nelson couldn’t be more excited for fans to see his Marvel Cinematic Universe comeback in next year’s Captain America: Brave New World .

Nelson first appeared as Dr. Samuel Sterns in The Incredible Hulk (2008), with the superhero movie teasing his character’s transformation into the villainous Leader. It was believed that Nelson would return as The Leader in a sequel to the 2008 movie; however, The Incredible Hulk’s poor box office performance — as well as Edward Norton’s departure as the Green Goliath — meant that the sequel was quietly shelved at Marvel Studios .

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter to promote his new movie, Bang Bang, Nelson touched on how honored he was to have been invited back to the MCU for Brave New World. “Being brought back into the MCU by [Marvel producers] Kevin [Feige] and Nate [Moore] and Kyana [F. Davidson] to be a villain alongside Giancarlo [Esposito] against Anthony Mackie has been a great honor,” the actor shared. “It’s been a really interesting adventure. I 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.”

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Nelson’s return as The Leader was announced by Marvel at the 2022 D23 Expo. While exact details as to how the villain factors into the plot of Captain America 4 remain under wraps, Nelson has gone on record stating that he is ultimately glad that his MCU return didn’t happen until now .

“I’m glad it took this long because the character I [play], actually, I think demands my own life experience over the past 18 years,” he shared in July 2024 at San Diego Comic-Con. “Because there’s a real depth and rage and pathos to this guy, and I needed 18 more years of life experience to try and pull that off.”

Captain America: Brave New World features the return of several Incredible Hulk characters

In addition to picking up the dangling Leader plotline from The Incredible Hulk, the fourth Captain America movie will bring back two other characters who originated in the 2008 movie: Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross and his daughter, Betty Ross. Harrison Ford will portray the former, succeeding the late William Hurt in the role, while Liv Tyler is reprising her role from The Incredible Hulk as the latter.

Anthony Mackie leads Brave New World as Sam Wilson/Captain America, marking the first time the actor has headlined an MCU project. Other cast members for Captain America: Brave New World include Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres/Flacon, Carl Lumbly as Isaiah Bradley, Shira Haas as Ruth Bat-Seraph/Sabra, and Giancarlo Esposito as Seth Voelker/Sidewinder.

Captain America: Brave New World opens in theaters on February 14, 2025, as part of Phase 5 of the MCU.