Captain America 4: How Marvel Explains Harrison Ford's Thunderbolt Ross Recasting

Harrison Ford is set to play Thunderbolt Ross in "Captain America: Brave New World," and Marvel is providing a cheeky in-universe explanation for his change in appearance.

Following the 2022 passing of William Hurt, who played Ross on the big screen in "The Incredible Hulk," "Captain America: Civil War," and "Avengers: Endgame," Marvel still has plans for the character, leading to Ford taking over the role. In "Captain America: Brave New World," Ross is the newly-elected president of the United States after serving as secretary of state and being a key figure in the passing of the Sokovia Accords. There have been constant rumors Thunderbolt Ross' Red Hulk will be one of the main villains in the upcoming movie. Adding more credence to the speculation, Ross will appear in "Thunderbolts," which could further explore his potential transformation. But, before that, his new look will be directly referenced when Ford makes his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut.

Scooper @CanWeGetToast shared on X (formerly known as Twitter) that "Captain America: Brave New World" addresses Ross' new appearance, confirmed by footage shown at CinemaCon. In the scene, Sam Wilson tells Ross, "I have to admit, I'm still not used to the new look," referencing the mustache-less Ford. Ross responds, "Me either. They said lose the mustache or lose the election." The interaction is similar to one from "Iron Man 2" when a recast of James Rhodes (Don Cheadle taking over for Terrence Howard) was handled with a winking line of dialogue.

While Harrison Ford takes over for William Hurt due to tragic circumstances, Marvel is no stranger to recasting roles for many reasons. 

The most infamous example is when Terrence Howard was fired from "Iron Man 2" after a supposed pay dispute and on-set drama with the actor. The most significant character recast was when Mark Ruffalo replaced Edward Norton as Bruce Banner aka the Hulk in "The Avengers." But Marvel has recast roles semi-often, such as Emma Fuhrmann being replaced by Kathryn Newton for "Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania," Ross Marquand taking over the Red Skull from Hugo Weaving in "Avengers: Endgame," and Zachary Levi stepping in for Josh Dallas to play Fandral of the Warriors Three in "Thor: The Dark World," and "Thor: Ragnarok." 

Marvel faces another potential recasting depending on their plans for Kang the Conqueror. After Marvel Studios dropped Jonathan Majors following convictions of harassment and assault, whether Kang will still be one of the central villains in "Avengers: Secret Wars" is unknown. If the character returns, someone else will play the time-traveling foe. However, if Kang is ultimately recast, it will be fascinating to see who replaces him and if Marvel recruits an A-list star as they did by casting Ford as Ross.