The Huge Marvel Question That The Falcon And The Winter Soldier Will Answer

The genius of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is that even in storylines that feel resolved, there are still plenty of unanswered questions. At the end of Avengers: Endgame, Steve Rogers' (Chris Evans) arc feels complete. He has helped save all his friends from Thanos (Josh Brolin), and traveled back in time to be with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), the one person he truly loves. Meanwhile, in the present, he's an old man, ready to hand off the role of Captain America to someone else. 

That's where The Falcon and the Winter Soldier begins. Steve gives the shield of Captain America over to Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie), and he and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) have to figure out how to live their lives, now that the friend who first united them is no longer saving the day. For Sam, that means dealing with what it potentially means to become Captain America, in today's world, and for Bucky, it means learning how to live his life, now that he's free from Hydra's mind control. 

Even as The Falcon and the Winter Soldier focuses on Sam and Bucky, though, the series will also answer one lingering question about Steve Rogers that Endgame left behind. 

Although the older version of Steve is not in the superhero game any more, his ultimate fate remains unclear. He could be dead, or a living advisor to Sam and Bucky as they attempt to continue their lives of super heroics. In an interview with Empire (via Twitter), Marvel head honcho Kevin Feige revealed that Marvel fans will learn more about whether Steve is alive over the course of the show. 

"Yes. In a roundabout way," Feige said when asked if the show would reveal Steve's fate. He continued, saying that while Steve being alive might be a "fair presumption," it's  "not necessarily the case." Feige also hinted at Steve's fate elsewhere in the piece when he described Sam and Bucky as "two best friends of a mutual friend who's not there anymore." That could mean that Steve is just occupied elsewhere, but he could also be gone in a much more permanent way. 

Promos for Falcon and the Winter Soldier have shown glimpses at a scene that some suspect could depict Sam speaking at Steve's funeral. Naturally, those clips only added more fuel to the fire, when it came to rumors suggesting that Steve's death may be a central part of the show's early episodes.

It's also possible that Steve is merely dead to the world, and only Sam and Bucky know that he actually just went to the past: the funeral could be staged, even though Sam and Bucky know where old Steve actually is. Although The Falcon and the Winter Soldier may provide more information about whether Steve is alive, it's unclear exactly when in the show's run that might happen. It could be as early as the show's first scene, or it could be a mystery that they tease out over the course of several episodes. While fans eagerly speculate about Steve's fate, only the show will be able to answer the question definitively. 

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier premieres on Disney+ on March 19.