Captain America: Brave New World director reveals why a more comic book accurate version of villains Sidewinder and the Serpent Society were cut

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"This is another case of the grounded aesthetic and tone of the film.," says Onah

Anthony Mackie and Giancarlo Esposito in Captain America: Brave New World
(Image credit: Marvel Studios)

Following the release of his Marvel film Captain America: Brave New World, Julius Onah has faced significant scrutiny over character design changes (including Tim Blake Nelson's Leader), reshoots, and the outright removal of cast members from the final cut. A notable group in this new adventure that suffered such treatment was the Serpent Society—a team of mercenaries referenced throughout the film and led by Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito). In an interview with Variety, Onah explained why this villainous group ended up on the cutting room floor.

"This is another case of the grounded aesthetic and tone of the film. Serpent Society had always been a part of the story since I joined, but as you are probably well aware, in publishing, these characters dress up in snake-like outfits and have snake-like powers," explained Onah. "Some of them are, you know, so over the top that they can even be a little bit cartoonish."

In addition to Eposito's Sidewinder, one character that appeared was Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson as Copperhead, who battles Sam at the start of the film. While both characters lacked the same kind of bite as their comic book counterparts, Onah realized during the project's development that this was the safer approach.

"You always want to honor what the fans love, but at the same time, you want to do what’s right for the movie. So I wouldn’t say it was ever what it was in the comics, but it leaned towards that a little bit more," Onah revealed. "As we got further in our process, it was just clear, this wants to sit in a [grounded] tone. I was trying to bring references like The Day of the Jackal and Point Blank, procedural, paranoid, and political thrillers, and having a Serpent Society that felt more grounded would make more sense." Learn all about the Serpent Society and what Cap missed out on here.

Nick Staniforth
Nick Staniforth
Contributing Writer

Nick is a freelancer whose work can be found at Screen Rant, The Digital Fix, and Looper. He loves movies, TV, DC, and Marvel. He also believes that the best Robin Hood is still a talking fox.