David Harbour Teases Red Guardian vs. Captain America!
In an article posted to Deadline on Friday, June 18th, 2021, Red Guardian actor David Harbour suggested that a story about a Cold War-style conflict between Captain America and the Soviet superhero he plays wasn’t out of the question! The actor went on to quip that he hoped Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige was listening (never fear, Marvel Blog True Believers: Feige was indeed on the Zoom call in which the conversation took place).
Avengers #44 by Roy Thomas, John Buscema, Vince Colletta, and Sam Rosen. Photo: Marvel Comics
Red Guardian
Unless you’re an avid Marvel Comics reader, you may not be aware of the Red Guardian yet, that will all change on July 9th, 2021 because that’s when Black Widow will be released in theaters and on Disney+ (with premiere access).
Photo: Marvel Studios
The character, who is also known as Alexei Shostakov, is played by Harbour, and is something of a patriarch figure for Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). Rounding out the family is the sister figure Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh). If you want to get a hint of their family dynamics, check out this video, which gives Harbour a chance to show off his dad joke superpowers!
Is Harbour telling dad jokes on set? Photo: Marvel Studios
According to Deadline, Harbour noted that there is a twenty-five year gap in Red Guardian’s history, meaning there’s plenty of narrative space to further expand the character’s story.
In Marvel comics, for example, the character is intended to be the Russian counterpart for Captain America (in other words, he’s a national hero dressed in red and white with a giant patriotic star in the center of his uniform), making him the perfect choice to go toe-to-toe with Steve Rogers. (Read more about the Red Guardian’s comic book history here).
Photo: Marvel
However, at the Deadline press conference, we learned that we’ll apparently see the character in Ohio, as well as in prison, in Black Widow, and not fighting Cap. So… When will we see those 25 years in between on screen?
“There is this period of time where he has all these stories about his life,” Deadline reported Harbour saying during the Zoom call. “It’s questionable whether or nor they’re real.”
Photo: UPROXX
It’s All Connected
As the Deadline article notes, Pugh’s Belova will be appearing on the upcoming Disney+ Marvel Cinematic Universe series Hawkeye. Does this mean that Harbour’s Red Guardian could be returning in future MCU stories, as well?
Photo: Marvel Studios
One thing’s for sure, Marvel Blog True Believers: if Harbour continues to be so entertaining in Zoom interviews, we’d sure like to see more of him! Let us know what you think in the comment section.
