Anthony Mackie picks up the shield at a potentially awkward time. But there’s one way Disney can do right by him and the next generation of Marvel stars.

Many of the faces in Captain America: Brave New World haven’t been on screen since 2008’s The Incredible Hulk which starred Edward Norton in the role of Bruce Banner, later recast with Mark Ruffalo when The Avengers (2012) came out and the Marvel Cinematic Universe took off.

The movie, which cost at least US$300 million (S$403 million) to make and market worldwide, was on pace to sell roughly US$100 million in tickets in the United States and Canada from Feb 13 to 16, according to Comscore, which compiles box-office data. Moviegoers overseas were poised to chip in another US$92 million or so.