Sidekicks Of 'Captain America: Civil War'

"Captain America: Civil War" comes out in the spring of 2016, and for those who aren't already aware, it will bring some drastic changes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In this film, conflict over whether or not superheroes should remain independent of government regulation will lead to a schism between Captain America and Iron Man, with the rest of the Avengers taking one side or the other.

Interestingly enough, the other main Avengers from the films, Hulk and Thor, are not expected to play a big role.

This means the two "teams" in "Civil War" will be made up largely of fringe Avengers who until now have only played supporting roles.

Screenrant identified these teams, and while there could still be some twists ahead—the rumored presence of a double agent on one of the sides—this has offered some insight into what we can expect in the film. And just as an early refresher course for those who may have skipped a Marvel film or two along the way, I wanted to provide some depth for the rosters and cover each character expected to appear.

Team Captain America

Team Cap will reportedly be the more rebellious side (somewhat surprising given his straight-laced nature compared to Tony Stark's maverick tendencies).

Evidently, Captain America has become doubtful of the government's ability to control assets without corruption, particularly given his history with evil organizations. The team will include these heroes.

• Falcon - Played by Anthony Mackie in "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," "Avengers: Age Of Ultron," and even in "Ant-Man," this character is an interesting case. He's clearly intended as Captain America's main sidekick, yet he really hasn't factored in significantly in any pivotal moments thus far. He's a strong candidate for a bigger role in a film focused on Captain America in which he'll need his allies.
• Winter Soldier - Captain America's (or at least Steve Rogers') former best friend should play a big role given that the second "Captain America" movie was named after him. Sebastian Stan, who plays the part, was actually already quoted here as suggesting he'd have a much bigger role moving forward and that "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" was just his introduction. That's intriguing for a character who thrilled fans without uttering much more than a few sentences in his debut movie.
• Sharon Carter - Emily VanCamp plays Sharon Carter as one of the few crossover characters between Marvel cinema and Marvel TV. The character is also known as Agent 13 and is expected to be something of a girlfriend to Captain America after her work in "The Winter Soldier." Still, it seems likely she'll be more of a supporting character in the upcoming film.
• Hawkeye - Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye has been one of the more confounding Marvel characters in film. He burst onto the scene pretty effectively in "The Avengers" shooting up a compound with arrows, and he's since been a satisfying action piece of the series. He also got a bit of much-needed backstory in "Age Of Ultron." But there's no logical placement for his allegiance in "Civil War," and frankly the knowledge that he's hiding a family somewhere makes it likelier that he'd side with the government and Iron Man. This makes him a decent candidate for the rumored double agent in the new movie.

Team Iron Man

Word is that Tony Stark decides to go ahead and comply with government regulation after his own decisions to dabble in super artificial intelligence resulted in Ultron in "Avengers: Age Of Ultron."

Presumably this will be a course that keeps him in line with S.H.I.E.L.D. as we know it, but the team will also include the following characters.

• War Machine - Played by Don Cheadle, Col. Rhodes/War Machine has been determinedly presented as Iron Man's sidekick. He basically has the same suit in a different color, and they have appeared together on film posters for "Iron Man 2" and "Iron Man 3." This gaming site even includes an Iron Man 2 game that makes them look like partners. The game features both characters equally, and includes War Machine icons and symbolism as readily as Iron Man. Yet it's always felt like Iron Man doesn't actually need this sidekick, in the movies. Look for that to change in "Civil War."
• Black Widow - Black Widow's kind of the opposite of War Machine. She's actually notoriously underrepresented in the scope of Marvel entertainment—no prominence on film posters, no online casino games (which are popular for lots of Marvel characters), and no standalone film. Yet the character, played by Scarlett Johansson, has been absolutely vital in the movies, whether by obtaining information, smuggling secrets, or taming the Hulk. Figure on Black Widow getting a lot of screen time to make up for unanswered calls for a solo film. And don't bet against her as the double agent either.
• The Vision - The Vision is Iron Man's creation, more or less, as the means of defeating Ultron. He'll certainly remain on Stark's side and frankly seems to offer an unfair advantage, the same way the Hulk or Thor would if they were included.
• Black Panther - This article has some rumors about Black Panther's involvement in the film, but all we know for sure is that he'll be played by Chadwick Boseman, and he'll likely have allegiance to Stark. Don't anticipate a major role, but Black Panther's addition should make for an intriguing introduction ahead of his upcoming solo film.

Aside from these characters, a few others are expected.

Ant-Man and Scarlet Witch are rumored to be part of Team Cap, for instance, and Spider-Man will be introduced almost certainly as a protege of sorts for Tony Stark.

The above superheroes are the existing sidekicks and supporting characters who should making up the main warring contingents in "Civil War."