Captain America: Civil War
It was risky.
To make a film with that many high-end characters, played by Hollywood’s biggest stars, had little precedence. The chance for failure was great. The few films that pitted top line figures against one another in a group-versus-group storyline often failed.
Hence, to look back 10 years, to see how successful was Captain America: Civil War, is to marvel (no pun intended) at this achievement by directors Anthony and Joe Russo.
The film solidified the reputation of the brothers Russo as crafters of blockbusters. With $1.1 billion in revenue, Captain America: Civil War was the precursor to Hollywood’s biggest hits by Anthony and Joe Russo. The duo went on to make the second and fourth largest grossing films in Hollywood history—for a combined revenue total of almost $5 billion—Avengers: Endgame and Avengers: Infinity War.
Captain America: Civil War
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Marvel The Past & Future
Captain America: Civil War was released in North America on May 6, 2016. On the surface, the film appeared to be another chapter in the ever-expanding Marvel saga. Today, we see the movie as a landmark in blockbuster filmmaking. The film offered a template for serialized storytelling, character conflict, and cinematic universes.
In 2017, Anthony and Joe Russo developed their own production company, AGBO. They are currently directing the next large-scale release for Marvel titled Avengers: Doomsday, set for Christmastime. The brothers will be directing the film to follow—Avengers: Secret Wars, scheduled release in 2027.
The Russos took time out of their busy schedule to sit down for an in-house interview to reflect on the ten year anniversary of Captain American: Civil War. The session was broadcast on AGBO’s YouTube channel.
Joe Russo, younger than Anthony by almost two years, claimed a genuine love for super hero stories inspired them to direct Captain American: Civil War. “We're comic book fans,” he said. “These ideas motivated us at the most impactful time in our lives. So I think ‘Civil War’ was really an expression of our love for the genre.”
Joe and Anthony Russo with the actors and actresses of Captain America: Civil War
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Embracing Risk
The movie’s premise was risky for it placed two beloved heroes — Captain America and Iron Man — on opposing sides. Anthony Russo recalled creative sessions at pre-production where the risk factor in making the film was also its most appealing feature. “These very loved characters fall out with one another and break up and have an irreconcilable conflict,” he said. “That seemed, as storytellers, threatening to us. That seemed excitable to us.”
The Russos managed to accomplish something Hollywood rarely achieves successfully: balancing an enormous ensemble cast without losing emotional focus. In Captain America: Civil War, superheroes choose sides between Iron Man and Captain America. Iron Man, played by Robert Downey, Jr., supports an aggressive central state to monitor and, even, reign in the heroes collective known as the Avengers. On his side are War Machine, Vision, Black Widow, Black Panther, and Spider-Man. For Captain America, played by Chris Evans, such government oversight was seen as a violation of individual sovereignty and liberty. On his team were the heroes Falcon, Hawkeye, Winter Soldier, Scarlet Witch, and Ant-Man.
Reflecting on the movie’s 10th anniversary, Anthony Russo explained that the filmmakers intentionally avoided presenting either side as completely correct. “You can take two heroes and make them completely opposed to one another in their objective,” he said. “The audience wants to be challenged. They want to be taken out of their comfort zone. Part of the reason why we’re able to realize a movie like ‘Civil War’ is because the audience was asking to be taken to these fresh surprising places.”
Even today, fans still passionately argue whether Steve Rogers (Captain America) or Tony Stark (Iron Man) made the better choice. In an age of increasing political and social polarization, the movie’s themes of accountability, freedom, and institutional power remain surprisingly relevant.
The Russo brothers - Joe and Anthony - receiving an award at CinemaCon and putting hand prints in cement at Grauman's Chinese Theater
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Cinematic Universe
Arguably, the film’s greatest appeal were the action sequences as mastered by the Russo brothers. Exceptional planning and timing were utilized by the directors to mark characters in fights, battles, and high-speed chases, all the while inserting complex visual effects. One of the film’s most iconic sequences — the airport battle between the divided Avengers — became an instant classic.
“We weren’t interested in the safe path,” recalls Joe Russo. “I mean, that wasn’t the story we wanted to tell. If every movie is optimistic, then there’s nowhere for the story to go. It’s just going to run out of gas. It needs tension and drama and conflict and pieces need to be broken in oder to be put back together.”
Cinematic universes were once risky experiments. Marvel had enjoyed success with earlier films, but Captain America: Civil War proved that audiences would embrace interconnected storytelling on a massive scale — even when the narratives became increasingly complex and emotionally layered.
Now comes a new phase in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Two new films, the first scheduled later this year and the second for next year—Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars—will have the Russo brothers at the helm. Looking back is to move forward. With Captain America: Civil War behind them, the Russos know what great achievements lie ahead for them and their fans.
Editor’s Note: The web site for the Russo Brothers film studio - AGBO Films is https://www.agbo.com
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a web site at https://www.marvel.com/movies
A trailer for Avengers: Doomsday can be seen here: https://www.marvel.com/movies/avengers-doomsday
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