Release Date: May 6, 2016
The story: After recent missions have caused unintended death and destruction around the world, The United Nations adopts The Sokovia Accords, a plan developed by Tony Stark, to make The Avengers subject to U.N. control. The resulting disagreement splits the team, as Captain America and the Falcon disobey orders in an attempt to track down and help Bucky Barnes, a.k.a. The Winter Soldier. After being framed for the death of T’Chaka, the king of Wakanda, Barnes is hunted by the king’s son, T’Challa, also a hero called Black Panther. Soon, Steve’s refusal to let the government have Bucky leads to all-out conflict between the Avengers who agree with Stark about not operating outside the law, and those who agree with Steve that superheroes shouldn’t be subject to any governing body. (One of the best fight sequences of any Marvel film ensues.) A hunt to discover who has been utilizing Hydra’s old brainwashing tactics on Bucky leads Tony and Steve to Helmut Zemo, who wants revenge on the Avengers for the death of his loved ones in Sokovia. Zemo reveals that Bucky was responsible for Tony’s parents’ murder, and the ensuing struggle forces Captain America into hiding, as well as relinquishing his shield to Iron Man.
Who appears:
Steve Rogers/Captain America
Tony Stark/Iron Man
Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier
Sam Wilson/The Falcon
Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
Vision
Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch
Scott Lang/Ant-Man
Clint Barton/Hawkeye
James Rhodes/War Machine/Iron Patriot
T’Challa/Black Panther
Peter Parker/Spider-Man
Sharon Carter
Brock Rumlow/Crossbones
Aunt May Parker
Thaddeus Ross
Helmut Zemo
Howard Stark
Maria Stark
F.R.I.D.A.Y.
Everett K. Ross
Noteworthy events: James Rhodes is partially paralyzed during a fight, requiring exoskeletal leg braces to permit him to walk at the film’s end. Crossbones is killed during an explosion while fighting Captain America. In a mid-credits scene, Bucky decides to return to cryogenic slumber (in a chamber kept safe in T’Challa’s Wakandan compound) until a solution to his brainwashing condition can be found. This is the first appearance of Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.