Marvel’s ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ debuts

It only takes a minute to make an A-list actor revert to his much younger self. Anthony Mackie, 42, goes back to a time when he wasn’t avenging.

“When I was starting out as an actor, they were shooting ‘Spider-Man’ in Harlem. I was sitting outside having lunch with my friend and I saw Tobey Maguire and then Joy Bryant run by me. She yelled out, ‘It’s Spider-Man!’

“I called my agent and said, ‘Damn it, I better have one line in one of those movies someday.’

“I still want to cry out ‘It’s She-Hulk! It’s Blade!’ ” says the man who, six Avengers films later, joins Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier in the much-awaited new series from Disney+. “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” which debuted this weekend, is a six-episode buddy action-comedy that was approached like a gritty, six-hour film.

On a Sunday, both actors Zoomed in to discuss the series and more.

Review-Journal: What is your definition of a great Sunday?

Anthony Mackie: If it’s football season, you’ll find me at home watching the New Orleans Saints. I’ll hang out with my kids. I love to relax by fishing with my family.

Sebastian Stan: Downtime is all about just being home. I’ll turn on some music. I’ll eat some good food or order in from a new restaurant. I love walking around New York and then just chilling.

Any pressure with your big Disney+ series debuting this weekend?

Mackie: “Endgame” was a monumental shift for the Marvel superhero universe. Our goal with the new series was not to mess it up. Our job was to take the torch and not make a bad show.

When “Avengers: Endgame” ended, Steve Rogers/Captain America gave the red, white and blue shield and Cap job to your character Sam, who has mixed feelings.

Mackie: Sam’s whole thing is he went on this Avengers journey over six movies with Steve/Cap because of his respect and admiration for Steve. Sam said, “When Captain America shows up at your door, you answer.” He’s feeling the pain now of not being able to go on these missions and help his friend. Sam is just like everyone else. He doesn’t want to see the Steve Rogers he knows go away. Just like Captain America was your Cap, he was also Sam Wilson’s Cap. That’s why Sam feels like the shield is someone else’s shield. Sam just doesn’t know if he has earned it just yet.

Now that they have their own TV show, what surprised you most about your character?

Mackie: I love that Sam is from New Orleans, which is my town. Specifically, because that’s the best state in the union and New Orleans is the best city in the world. I just had one request: Could Sam eat crawfish on camera in a Marvel project. I don’t know who, but somebody said no. It was too much to eat crawfish for Marvel. Seriously, the idea is Sam is always evolving in the world of the comics and on screen. He started out as a bit of a hustler, and Stan Lee evolved him into a more mature incarnation of himself.

We find out that Bucky has been in therapy.

Stan: We’re finally zooming in on his quest for identity in terms of really accepting his past and re-educating himself about the world he’s in. The ideals he was driven by no longer serve him.

This series has been described as almost like a cop buddy movie. How do you make this relationship work?

Mackie: You can’t find two people further opposite than Sebastian and I, but there is a mutual respect and admiration. We allow each other to be ourselves. And we’re friends, which is not a term either of us use lightly.

Stan: With acting it’s always about the people who bring out things in you. In this particular situation, it was really important to find that tone for us that was a fine line between grounded and real, with some humor. I’m always turning to Anthony for guidance.

Sebastian, your character Bucky explores PTSD.

Stan: Both of these characters share that as soldiers who have served. It’s a bit of an honor code between them. As everybody knows, PTSD is not something you’re just done with in life. It’s something one has to continue to deal with and grow with every single day. It’s a major part of the show and grounds the characters in a real way.

Compare the intensity of doing movie stunts with TV stunts.

Stan: The stunts on the series are on par with the films and actually more evolved and intense.

Mackie: Nothing has been watered down. The same stunt guys we work with on the films are doing the TV series with us.

Now that the Marvel cinematic universe has lost Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans), how important is it to get into the skin of some of the lesser-known Avengers?

Mackie: Since Kevin Feige (Marvel CEO) killed Iron Man, it’s real important. We have to introduce these other characters to the audience and give them the kind of history that was built over 10 years with Cap and Iron Man.

Will there be guest appearances from other Avengers?

Mackie: There will be many surprises. I’d love to work with She-Hulk in the future, and I’d really like to spend some time in the Blade world.

Stan: One character that sounds really cool to me is the one Oscar Isaac is going to play, called Moon Knight.