Funnily enough, this editorial started out as Why Michael Fassbender Is Perfect For The Role Of Captain Britain but as I started to write about the way in which the character has been handled in the comic books, I got to thinking - will we ever really see the character make his way onto the big screen? At first, I thought that I might as well have finished writing then and there as the facts seem to point to it being pretty unlikely. However, the more I did write (this is without a doubt the longest editorial I’ve ever written in fact) the more I realised that there might actually be a pretty good chance that he’ll get a movie. I hope what’s below will give you a good idea of why I think that and quite frankly, why Captain Britain deserves one!
Captain Britain has been handled pretty badly over the years in my opinion. He was originally created as a part of Marvel UK and so it wasn’t really until the 1980’s that the character was introduced to an international audience. Since then, he’s appeared in several series’ all of which have eventually been cancelled. It was Watchmen writer Alan Moore as well as Chris Claremont who worked hardest to bring Captain Britain into the spotlight in order to make him a larger part of the Marvel Universe but the fact that his stories were often relegated to anthology titles like Mighty World of Marvel and The Daredevils did little to help make him as popular as the other already established superheroes.
His late introduction into the Marvel Universe and the way in which he was then handled cant be completely blamed of course. There are plenty of characters that are based in other countries, Black Panther for example, but when you have a hero like Captain Britain who was actually created to be the UK’s version of Steve Rogers it makes it a little harder to then take him out of his home and put him into a book like the Avengers. His latest series, Captain Britain and MI: 13 went some way towards further integrating Captain Britain into more of the big Marvel events with a Secret Invasion tie-in but despite this and the book getting critical and fan acclaim, it was cancelled after only fifteen issues.
Wouldn’t it have been great to see Brian Braddock taking a side in Civil War or heading over to the US to help his friends tackle Norman Osborn’s Dark Reign? I honestly have no idea whether Marvel just aren’t that bothered about the character or if the fans aren’t. (after all, there has to be reason why his series are always getting cancelled - even I haven’t bothered to pick up some of the poorer ones that have been released in recent years!) To be fair though, it’s not hard to see why either of these could be the case. We already have Captain America and with very few interesting stories being told about Captain Britain in the UK and him having little, to no, involvement in events outside of his country it’s not a huge surprise that he’s not exactly all that popular.
Why am I going on about the comic books so much? Well, are they really going to consider making a movie based on Captain Britain when all of the points I’ve listed above seem to indicate that he’s a pretty unimportant (and far from hugely popular) character in the grand scheme of the Marvel Universe? I’ve been surprised while discussing him here on CBM just how many of you would in fact like to see Cap feature in his own film and the fact is that there is a lot of potential to giving him one. I know that there’s some concern about how Marvel are going to make Captain America appeal to a worldwide audience but I don’t think that the same is true for Captain Britain (and in all honesty, I don’t think it will be too hard for Steve Rogers’ story to appeal to those outside of the US either) as they’re two very different characters.
The fact his powers come from magic rather than science would give Marvel the chance to explore a different sort of superhero (as they’ll soon be doing with Thor) and the fact that his origins are also steeped in classic British mythology like Merlin as well as the more fantastical side of things such as the Multiverse could lead to this being one of the most interesting and unique comic book movies yet. It if were filmed around landmark UK locations with an entirely British cast, I honestly think that it would interest more non-British fans that it would isolate them. Just imagine Captain Britain and Slaymaster clashing in the streets of London smashing though Big Ben or fighting atop the Millennium Wheel? Sounds pretty damned epic to me!
As much as I often protest against changes being made to comic book characters as they’re translated onto the big screen, this time I think that there are a few that would be necessary. For example, I think his early origins of using an amulet to transform himself into Captain Britain should be dropped in preference of him just receiving his powers in the same way (from Merlyn and Roma after a motorcycle accident) but in a far more direct fashion that remains true to the comic books but puts a now super powered Brian Braddock in the classic costume he’s best known for rather than the lesser known original that wasn’t around for all that long anyway. Thinking about it, that’s probably the only thing that needs to be changed. With plenty of interesting allies to choose from and a host of storytelling opportunities should they decide to include the Captain Britain Corps, I think that there’s a really excellent range of source material for them to use and, if necessary, alter in order to make a brilliant movie.
Way back in I posted a story - which you can find by clicking here - from ‘Showbiz Spy’ that claimed Captain Britain was in development and that, "It will be darker and grittier than movies like Spider-Man and Iron Man - kind of like Marvel’s answer to The Dark Knight”. Now, this information came from an inside source (and we all know how reliable they can be!) but to me, this sounds like the perfect direction in which to take a potential movie. After The Avengers, I hope that Marvel will continue to give Captain America, Thor and Iron Man their own movie series’ but I also think that it’s the perfect time to start introducing some new characters who are different to what we’ve already seen in both tone and powers. Captain Britain is an ideal candidate for such a movie.
I am of course assuming that Marvel Studios have the rights to the character. Although Excalibur was mostly made up of mutants, (as is his sister Psylocke) Captain Britain isn’t one and so I find it highly unlikely that Fox hold the rights to him in any way. This of course means cameos! The Avengers would be the perfect place to perhaps mention him while Captain America’s link to Britain during WWII with Union Jack could also lead to Steve perhaps visiting the UK and meeting up with Captain Britain! My point is, if Marvel use their upcoming movies to help introduce Cap, while also continuing to build the Marvel movie universe, it’s going to bring a lot more attention and interest to this film. After all, an Iron Man or Nick Fury appearance is bound to help when making a movie about a lesser known character.
So there you have it. He may not have had the greatest of times when it comes to the comic books (although I’m looking forward to seeing what happens now that he’s been made an Avenger!) but a movie is something that would both change that and make for one hell of great addition to Marvel Studios’ ever increasing roster of superheroes. I would highly recommend any comic book reader to go out and pick up Alan Moore and Alan Davis’ amazing run on Captain Britain as it not only makes for an excellent read but is also the perfect example of the potential a film adaptation has! When I started writing this editorial a few hours ago, I felt pretty negative about the chances of ever seeing this movie being made. However, now I’ve written it, I’m reminded of why I like the character so much and just how great it would be to see him come to life on the big screen. I hope that reading this will show you as well that a Captain Britain movie could be just as exciting and interesting as those that are coming out in the near future like The First Avenger: Captain America and those that are rumoured to be released in the next few years such as Black Panther and Doctor Strange! I just hope that Captain Britain will soon be made one of them.
Finally, there are two very important questions left that I plan on going into more detail on in a future article - who should play Captain Britain and who should direct? In my opinion, Michael Fassbender and Guy Ritchie. But that’s just my opinion! Have your say about that and whether you’d like to see a Captain Britain movie in the usual place! And as always, thanks for reading! :)
-JoshW
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