Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have written some of the biggest Marvel Studios movies, including Infinity War and Endgame, but they got their MCU start with 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger. Those were early days for the now-enormous studio, when, according to McFeely, “There’s six people in the whole building, they’re above a car dealership, they’re not the Marvel we think of now.”
In a recent interview with Yahoo! News to mark ten years after Cap’s movie debut, the screenwriting duo revealed plot points that didn’t make it on-camera—and some rather intriguing opinions on Steve Rogers’ personal life. Kudos to Yahoo! News’ Kevin Polowy for asking the questions we really want answers to.
My favorite bit of axed plot info has to be that Cap was going to fight a hulking Hydrabot. Markus and McFeely told Polowy that The First Avenger’s third act was initially supposed to go quite differently. There was “a huge Hydra robot” under Red Skull’s control that Captain America would have had to battle. The giant “Nazi super robot” eventually fell victim to budget and time restrictions. Its name, we learn, was Panzermax.
“Panzer” is the German word for “tank,” so I’m picturing a really freaking huge Nazi tank with Transformers vibes who can walk (roll?) around and punch things, namely Steve. The First Avenger kept an accurate 1930s and 40s aesthetic, so I can imagine this old-fashioned robot could have looked pretty cool onscreen, but it’s also an over-the-top visual to imagine. Alas for Panzerbot, but I think it was the right choice that it got cut out.
But you’re here for McFeely and Markus’ opinions on another matter entirely. Polowy enquires after the state of Steve’s sexual activity during his star-spangled days. Steve possibly being a virgin and remaining so for a while has been a matter of fan theory (and a subject for a lot of fanfiction) for many years. As Yahoo! News explains:
The question of if and when Steve Rogers ever lost his virginity after being frozen in ice for 60-plus years has long been theorized and joked about by Marvel fans and pundits. One popular opinion is that Rogers didn’t have sex until he stayed in the past to grow old with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) following the time-hopping climax of Avengers: Endgame.
But according to the screenwriters behind all the Cap films and those last Avengers movies, pre-ice Steve Rogers was no blushing bluenose, thank you very much.
“I think he loses his virginity!” McFeely reacts emphatically. “Why do people think he’s a virgin?”
In fact, Steve might have had more fun than he lets on during his whirlwind stage tour as Captain America in First Avenger, when he’s working to promote the war effort and winning over hearts and minds.
McFeely suggests that Steve might have been doing a little more than singing and dancing during his USO Tour across the nation to introduce him as Captain America and promote war bonds.
“If you look like that, and you’re going to city to city, and you’re signing autographs for the likes of the ladies that he’s signing the autographs for, I’ve got to imagine that [he lost his virginity],” McFeely explains.
As a Cap fan, I think this idea of Steve not being the uptight, more moralizing version we sometimes see him depicted as (*cough The Avengers *cough*) is entirely accurate. Just because Steve is an upstanding fellow in the streets doesn’t mean he’s a puritan in the sheets. The longstanding Captain America-based fandom might also like it mentioned here that Steve Rogers is considered to be somewhat of a bisexual icon in many fan circles. So let’s just pretend we live in a world where McFeely said “ladies and gentleman” and call it a day.
Markus backs up McFeely’s thoughts on the virginal Steve theorizing and reminds us that Steve is a battle-hardened soldier and not “a choirboy.”
“Yeah,” Markus agrees. “And the thing to remember is Steve Rogers isn’t a prude. He may be occasionally presented that way. He’s a guy that believes in right and wrong and all these things, but he’s not a choirboy. He’s a World War II veteran.”
And there you have it, folks. The men who wrote all three Captain America films believe Steve Rogers had a healthy sex life. What do you think?
(via Yahoo! News, images: Marvel Studios)
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