Who Will Likely Die In Captain America: Civil War

With war comes casualties, and the Civil War was one of the bloodiest battles in American history. We have a feeling Captain America: Civil War will live up to its namesake, and that means bad news for everyone's favorite band of intrepid superheroes. When the third Captain America film hits movie theaters, chances are someone is going to pay the ultimate price. Here's a look at who is most likely to be carried out on Steve Roger's star-spangled shield in Captain America: Civil War. As you'd expect, there are potential spoilers ahead.

Yeah, it would be a pretty bold move for Marvel to kill off the lead character in one of its biggest franchises. Nevertheless, there are some good reasons to think it might happen. Not only has Chris Evans previously voiced his desire to retire from acting, but Captain America actually died at the end of the Civil War storyline in the comics. If Evans isn't on board for the massive commitment the Marvel Cinematic Universe requires, this might be a good time to clear the decks and pass the shield off to Bucky or Falcon before Avengers: Infinity War starts.

In the comics, Bucky Barnes took over the role of Captain America after Cap was killed at the end of Civil War. But if Cap survives Civil War, what then? All of a sudden, there's no narrative purpose left for Winter Solider to fill. The whole conflict that kicks off Civil War revolves around the Winter Soldier. With half of the heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe gunning for him, does poor Bucky even stand a chance?

Does the world really need two Iron Men? Probably not, especially if killing off the extra one gives Tony Stark a good reason to get really ticked off. Trailers for Civil War have already shown Stark's best bud James Rhodes lying in Tony's arms, with his armor shredded to bits. Yeah, maybe they're just cuddling, but it's more likely that Rhodey is seriously injured—or dead.

Steve and Natasha showed in Captain America: The Winter Soldier that they have a unique bond and an undeniable chemistry. They now find themselves on opposite sides of the Civil War. Killing off Black Widow would add an extra emotional oomph to Cap's journey. It wouldn't surprise us if Scarlett Johansson is just sick of playing second fiddle in every movie without getting a chance to headline her own feature. Asking to have her character killed off would certainly be a powerful message to Marvel and Hollywood about the roles of women in superhero movies.

This one is just kind of obvious. Played by Daniel Bruhl, the sinister Baron Zemo is the bad guy secretly pulling the strings behind the curtains of Civil War. Being the lead villain in a superhero movie usually brings with it a very short life expectancy. Yeah, maybe he'll survive to menace our heroes in a sequel, but it's more likely that Zemo will die before we really even have a chance to know him. C'est la vie.

Unlike his presumed boss, Baron Zemo, Crossbones had already appeared in one Marvel feature film (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) and lived to tell the tale. It's possible that the former S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra operative once known as Brock Rumlow will again survive and face off against Captain America in the future; but, you know, probably not. Let's face it, the guy has it coming: with a name like "Crossbones," death is always going to be part of the picture.

While Cap's first love, Peggy Carter, may be safe thanks to the fact that she's a little old lady in the present day, her great niece Sharon Carter has no such luck. As a potential love interest for the male action hero, the former S.H.I.E.L.D. operative known as Agent 13 might as well have a target on her back, because she's just the sort of character filmmakers have traditionally killed off to pull on the emotional heartstrings. For Sharon Carter, we think 13 might be an unlucky number indeed.

The Civil War trailers prominently feature General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. Bruce Banner's main antagonist hasn't appeared on screen since 2008's The Incredible Hulk. So why has Marvel dusted him off eight years later? Maybe so they could really dust him off. William Hurt's grumpy military authoritarian is just the sort of guy who tends to be killed off in order to send a message. And that message is: nobody is safe in a Marvel movie.

So the new version of Spider-Man will be making his debut in Captain America: Civil War. And that's cool, because it means we won't be subjected to yet another version of his origin story, or so we think. What if they work Peter Parker's origins into Civil War? After all, we know that the plot involves some kind of catastrophe that kills off a bunch of innocent people. Could one of those people be Uncle Ben? It has almost become a rule that if you recast a character, we've gotta see the origin story redone.