Changes: The New Warriors (Earth-11584)

Revision as of 23:54, 10 March 2020

The New Warriors is a 2019 film set in the Earth-11584 continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is officially the first iteration of the team to appear on film, however this version of the New Warriors borrows also from other comic book teams such as the Young Avengers and the Champions. The film follows the four surviving heroes from the distopian future of 2039 depicted in Avengers: Infinity Gauntlet as they adjust to this new world and become overnight celebrities when taken under the wing of Hollywood producer Mojo Adams. The film was directed by Matthew Vaughn, a veteran of other super hero franchises, who makes his directorial debut in the MCU here.

Production

Coming Soon...

Plot Summary

We open inside Alcatraz prison, where a riot is breaking out amongst the population that's been stored at the recently recommissioned facility. The guards attempt in vain to contain the riot, eventually being beaten down and disarmed by the prisoners, who appear to be under the leadership of a man named Blockbuster. Interspersed with this footage of the riot, we get notice from a police radio feeding information to a helicopter that appears en route to the island, telling them to send in the Champions to deal with the prisoners. The helicopter swoops in over the open air courtyard of the prison, and five heroes (led by a good-looking blonde man going by the name Longshot) jump out of the helicopter and stand heroically amongst the incoming rioting prisoners. We get several action shots of the team as they take out the rioting prisoners, consisting of Longshot's acrobatics, a red-white-blue clad girl who can fly and has super strength named Miss America, a man clad in SWAT gear and using tonfa weapons named Night Thrasher, a mutant with the ability to literally bounce around on balls of kinetic energy named Speedball and a young girl with a physical resemblance to a squirrel who also commands legions of the rodents (and is skilled in martial arts) named, appropriately enough, Squirrel Girl.

The five make short work of the goons sent to fight them, but some of the inmates begin using the weapons stolen from the guards to shoot at them. The five are able to dodge the gunfire and take out the inmates after a few brief moments of difficulty, before moving inside the prison to take on the leader of the riot and freeing the hostages. Throughout the whole affair we get snippets of "witty" banter between the heroes, though Longshot seems far more serious than the others. The group confronts the villain Blockbuster, who seems to have "generic strength powers" as Speedball puts it, and with little difficulty defeat him. As they stand victorious over the villain, the camera pans out to reveal that the previous sequence of events was airing out on television. We zoom out as a commercial break begins to hit and see we are in a department store in a small suburban Arizona town. The camera pans out of the electronics store where the show had been on television and pulls back to a skating park near sunset. Most of the kids have left for the evening, and only one still seems to be active. He gets a call on a cellphone telling him to come home for dinner, and the young Hispanic teenager starts heading that way.

Halfway home he sees a meteor crashing from the sky nearby. He can hear his father's voice in the distance, and he calls back that he'll be there in a minute as he runs off a few hundred feet to check the crater nearby. As he approaches it, the camera follows from behind in his perspective, as he sees the familiar pristine helmet of a Nova Corpsman at the center of the crater, specifically the one that had belonged to Rhomann Dey. Checking to see if anyone else is nearby, the young boy (whom from his father's cries we know to be named Sam) picks up the helmet, amazed with how cool it looks. Without hesitation he puts the helmet on, and almost instantly he is supercharged with a large amount of cosmic power, launching himself into the air as he skateboard clatters to the ground. Sam yells at first in fear and confusion and then in jubilation as he realizes he can fly. He performs a few tricks in midair before losing control and crash landing nearby. Upon hearing his father's voice again, he takes off the helmet and stashes it in his backpack before running home again. The Marvel Studios logo then displays.

We cut the rented mansion where Miles Morales, William Maximoff, Kamala Khan and Teddy Altman have been staying since their arrival from an alternate future. Miles is currently flipping through TV channels, seemingly bored out of his mind, as we see a news report about the recent manhunt for former television star Arthur Centino, better known as Longshot. Miles flips to another channel on TV, off handedly commenting that it was a shame the "Champions" show was canceled recently. Kamala, while reading a book, off handedly remarks that she understands why that show wasn't remembered 20 years from now, it looks stupid. Teddy, who is in the middle of a skeeball game with William, says that it wasn't remembered because it didn't exist: like some other things this "Champions" show appears to be a consequence of their time travel. Miles quietly remarks one of the lesser issues, as he passes by a news report about anti-mutant hysteria in San Francisco. Miles asks if they know how their traveling through time caused mutants to exist, and Wiccan replies that as far as he can tell, their accident in the temporal vortex while in the Quantum Realm caused a rift sending Quantum Particles scattering into times in the past. These particles apparently triggered latent mutations, which this timeline refers to as the X-Gene, to have been activated when they wouldn't have been otherwise, leading to the rise of mutants, even if they've only been publicly known for a few years to this point. As they examine more of the anti-mutant hysteria, Kamala adds that the fact that they are responsible for this strife should probably be kept on the down low.

The four's ideas are interrupted by a phone call from SHIELD agent Glenn Talbot, who is calling on behalf of the newly minted SHIELD director Phil Coulson. Talbot tells the four that they are still trying to determine what their "legal status" is, given that at least two of them are minors and are most assuredly not able to be cared for by their parents in this time (which causes a brief flick of grief across the face of Miles Morales and Kamala Khan). The four say they can take care of themselves, and Talbot patronizingly says that they are too young to make that decision in reality. He tells them to sit tight and that a decision will soon be reached while they sort all of this out. In the meantime, if anything comes up, William will act as guardian in loco parentis. Teddy frustratingly shuts off the Skype call and flops down on the couch, as the other three look dejected as well. William says he is 18 and should be able to act as a legal guardian if they have to have one, but it seems like they don't want to go with that option. While Kamala is somewhat afraid of being split apart, Miles is more annoyed with being cooped up in the mansion instead of helping out where they can. William tries to suggest caution, but Teddy sides with Miles (and Kamala, albeit reluctantly) and says they should be able to be heroes like they had been before. Miles television fatefully stops on a news bulletin of the anti-mutant demonstration in San Francisco being broken up by an attack by a mutant, which steels the resolve of the four to engage in hero work. Wiccan reluctantly opens a portal to San Francisco, where they confront the green armor clad mutant, who goes by the name of Whirlwind.

At the rally, Whirlwind is causing a ruckus for the anti-mutant protestors, and also for a special division of SHIELD cordoned to deal with mutants. The four heroes stand between Whirlwind and the protestors, with Wiccan directing Miles and Teddy to deal with crowd control while he and Kamala deal with the threat. Whirlwind laughs at these "Avengers wannabes" and starts attacking them and the crowd indiscriminantly. The four heroes in their own way do battle with the tornadic mutant, but Miles and Kamala's inexperience causes them to be injured in the attack, as well as causing massive amounts of collateral damage nearby that they struggle to save people from. Things look bleak until another figure enters the battle. The four Young Avengers are taken aback by the arrival of the red, white and blue woman we had seen in the clip of the Champions, Miss America. As she arrives, we see several drones deploy around the area, each equipped with a camera. Whirlwind scoffs at the arrival of this "little girl", but the seasoned hero easily holds her own against the mutant malcontent. The other four heroes can only sit back and watch as Miss America takes out Whirlwind relatively easily, reduced to becoming spectators like the rest of the crowd. As Whirlwind is hauled off by the SHIELD Mutant task force, Wiccan and company confront Miss America, only for her to ask what the hell they were doing "getting in her way." An argument between her and the Young Avengers breaks out, and nearly comes to blows, before it is broken up by a man arriving in a limousine. A large man in a three-piece suit with slicked back gray hair gets out of the limo, introducing himself as Mojo Adams, the producer behind the Champions program. Miss America tries to ask why he's here, but Mojo says he is here as a talent scout, and offers the four teens a ride back to their mansion. Wiccan seems reluctant to go, but is eventually roped into going with the rest of the group.

In the limo, along with his personal assistant named Rita who remains quiet, Mojo explains that he created the Champions program to serve as an inspiration to the people of the world. Heroes like the Avengers and the Fantastic Four are larger than life characters that people can idolize, but they can't really identify with. He decided to create a team of heroes who were more down to earth; showcasing their day to day lives while also showing their missions from a creative standpoint. Miles starts to say that the show didn't exist where they came from, but Wiccan catches his eye and stops him from saying anything. Teddy asks why the show ended, and Mojo is mum about the subject. America chimes in, saying Longshot and the others didn't see the benefits of what they were trying to do, and that they didn't like the intrusion into their lives. Mojo mutters an agreement and then says he's looking for a team to replace them, a team of new Champions...or New Warriors whatever the focus group comes back with. He says the four of them would be ideal candidates, as they had been a part of the group that saved the world. Wiccan asks how he knows about that, and Mojo cautiously replies that there's little he doesn't know. As they pull back in front of the mansion, he hands Wiccan a card and tells them to keep him in mind in the future. Wiccan dismissively says they'll consider it, but it is obvious that Miles and Kamala are excited about the prospect of being on television. The four re-enter the mansion, discussing the possibilities. Back inside the limo, America replies that she doesn't need teammates, and Mojo agrees with her. He tells her to head back for the studio while he makes a phone call, and she does that. Mojo places a phone call to an unknown party as he rides off, saying that contact has been made. Inside the mansion, the four heroes are immediately confronted by the installed SHIELD AI program, which tells them they have an assignment SHIELD needs help with, specifically a new "person of interest" in the southwest region. Kamala and Miles agree to travel to Arizona, leaving Wiccan and Hulkling to discuss Mojo's offer.

In Arizona, we see Sam Alexander getting out of school, saying goodbye to his friends as he heads home for the weekend, taking off on his skateboard. Once he gets far enough away from the school, he ditches his board and ruffles through his backpack, pulling out the Nova Corps helmet he had found before. He looks around to make sure no one is watching before putting it on his head and materializing a uniform similar to that of the Nova Corps from Xandar and taking off, continuing testing his powers by going on a joyride. On the outskirts of the suburb, a Quinjet lands and Kamala and Miles get off, escorted by Agent Talbot. They ask how they are actually able to find the kid they are looking for, when they spot him flying through the air above their heads. Kamala starts to get back on the jet, but Miles has an idea, donning his mask and leaping to the top of a nearby mini-mall. He slings a web at the oblivious Alexander, clinging on to him and then being taken on a wild ride by the young man. Alexander quickly notices him and then suddenly stops, causing Miles to go crashing to the nearby ground. Sam lands, Kamala and Talbot quickly joining Miles, who gets to his feet. They try to introduce themselves to Sam, Talbot starting to drone on about the Avengers Protocols and the need to register his superhuman abilities. Miles and Kamala try to relate to Sam as young people, explaining that they are working with SHIELD in establishing a new team of young heroes (something Talbot is quick to dismiss, much to their dismay). Sam disregards them, having no idea who they are, and Talbot tries to force the issue by attempting to "arrest" Sam. The newly powered Nova resists, getting into a brief scuffle with Miles and Kamala (or are obviously reluctant to engage), but they are quickly (and surprisingly) joined by Miss America, whom Sam immediately recognizes from television. America (which she points out is her real name) states that she was sent by Mojo to recruit Sam to be in the new version of the Champions television show. Sam geeks out over this, but does say that it's up to his father. Agent Talbot intercedes, saying that super-powered individuals should not be going around having a television show. Director Stark had tried to shut down the Champions, and they're going to do the same thing again. He orders Miles and Kamala to apprehend America, but the two of them simply stare at each other and then at Agent Talbot, slyly saying they aren't SHIELD agents. A limo drives up, revealing once again Mojo and Rita Wayword, along with Sam's father, who robotically tells him that they're going to have a discussion about a life changing opportunity. Miss America smiles at Talbot, before Sam joins them and drives off, leaving Kamala and Miles with an irate SHIELD agent.

Back at the mansion, Wiccan and Hulkling consult with each other over the offer from Mojo, among other things. They speak of their past with Cassie and Lila from their original timeline, Hulkling briefly wondering if anyone could have survived the coming of Galactus. Wiccan doesn't allow them to dwell on such thoughts, instead pointing out that at least they have each other, earning a blush from his boyfriend. Their moment is interrupted by Talbot returning with Miles and Kamala angrily. Assuming that since he is the "adult" then he is the guy who will be in charge, he threatens all four of them with incarceration if they do not follow SHIELD protocols. He also tells them that he's going to get the Avengers involved to take over this "glorified babysitting job." Teddy tries to defuse the situation, while Miles and Kamala simply argue back about what had happened with the young Sam. Wiccan sits their unapologetic while he listens to Talbot's rant, and when the irate SHIELD agent turns to him for commentary, Wiccan simply waves his hand and opens a portal beneath Talbot's feet, sending him into the middle of the California forest without a second thought. At the mansion, the four agree to take up Mojo on their offer and take what few things are theirs and then vacate the mansion.

In a nondescript Hollywood studio, Mojo's limo pulls up and the producer gets out, along with Rita, Miss America and Sam. Mojo tells them to wait there while he gets the contracts out, allowing Sam and America to speak with each other briefly, Sam explaining that he has received some knowledge of something called the "Nova Corps" into his brain from wearing the helmet. America also describes her origins briefly as being an orphan experimented on by remnants of HYDRA who had attempted to restart Baron Strucker's experiments with human enhancement. As Mojo returns with legal paperwork, they are all surprised by a portal opening up and the four Young Avengers stepping through, Wiccan glad that they "finally found the place." They agree to take Mojo on on his offer to become his new team of Champions, though Mojo says that they have a new name they are going to use...the New Warriors...telling Rita to get more contracts.

We get a montage of the five newest members of the New Warriors demonstrating their powers in front of Mojo, Miss America and Rita, as the producer tries to tweak their images and backstories. They go through several names for Miles, as Mojo tells him that "the Spider-Man gig is already taken up." They suggest Kamala cut her hair (which doesn't go over well). When Mojo suggests to Wiccan and Hulkling that they try to act like heartthrobs for the ladies, they silence the producer with a deathly stare.The heroes also take up residence in a fancier mansion than the one they had been living in before, the cameras filming their "settling in" moments with each other (we also hear Sam surprised that his dad agreed to all of this). The montage also works on their training together as a team, the four time displaced heroes working together as their individual units, but all six of them initially having difficulty working cohesively togather. As the montage ends, they are working seamlessly though. Before long the five heroes, along with Miss America, are ready to be sent on a patrol with several cameras attached to drones following them along.They are dispatched by Rita, who is connected to several police radios at once in their immediate vicinity, to a bank robbery being conducted by a super villain known only as Boomerang.

Miss America describes the villain as a former foe of the Champions, a former Australian commando who turned mercenary some time earlier. As the commando holds people in the bank hostage, the team barge in (ignoring the need for tactics or the like) and attack the villain and his hired guns. In short order the fight spills outside to the streets and, though the heroes try their best, collateral damage does occur. However, they take out Boomerang with little difficulty, posing for the cameras as they do so. This process repeats itself, as the New Warriors take out some other villains on the West Coast, including the returning Whirlwind as well as the Trapster (aka Paste-Pot Pete). Interspersed with this we get interviews with the cast members, though it quickly becomes clear that the heroes are uncomfortable talking about their own personal lives. Despite this, we see Mojo speaking with the group, telling them the ratings have never been higher for the show. Just a few weeks in and they already have sponsorship deals coast to coast as he starts discussing potential movie deals. However, Wiccan comments that this whole celebrity thing is nice, but the cameras are getting intrusive on their own personal lives. Mojo tells him not to worry about little things like that, pointing out that the other four don't appear to have problems with it. Hulkling tells him not to speak for him, which surprises Mojo somewhat, but Miles and Kamala mechanically say that they don't mind either. The argument is interrupted, however, by the surprise arrival of the Scarlet Witch and Vision. Upon entering the mansion (much to Mojo's chagrin), they try to talk to the four wayward heroes about what they are doing, Vision taking a logical approach and Scarlet Witch trying to appeal to Wiccan. She says that he really shouldn't have left Talbot in the middle of a forest, no matter how much of an idiot he is, but Wiccan replies that he had it coming (and that it was no worse than she would have done in a future time.) Wanda is taken a back by this line of reasoning, but Vision tries to re-establish control of the situation by reminding the four that they aren't in their time anymore. Mojo chimes in, taking the side of the heroes who "deserve" their independence from the control of SHIELD, but Vision interjects that SHIELD isn't trying to control them, merely figure out what's best for them. Miles says they can figure that out for themselves, but they are willing to listen to reason. The argument is interrupted though by Miss America and Nova entering the room, saying they've finally gotten a lead on where their #1 target is. When Kamala asks who it is, America simply replies Longshot and her former teammates.

The group's discussion takes a backseat as they disperse to find Longshot and the former Champions team holed up in the woods. Vision and Scarlet Witch tag along, still trying to talk reason to the Young Avengers, but agree not to call in SHIELD or other Avengers into the fold. We learn a bit about Longshot and his reasoning for leaving Mojo's employ, as Miss America says that he and the former teammates of Night Thrasher, Speedball and Squirrel Girl were engaging in espionage for the Maggia and rogue nations. Wanda asks America why SHIELD wasn't notified of this, and Mojo chimes in through a radio transmitter that they did contact SHIELD, but that Tony Stark wanted nothing to do with him or his information. Before long the group reaches a wooded area inside a national park, departing the chopper they were on (and Wiccan grumbling that a portal would have been faster). The group spreads out to track down Longshot and his group, but we can see that they are being watched from above, as several squirrels move about through the trees.

The group is quickly ambushed one by one by Longshot's forces, who engage in hit and run battles with the superior number of heroes. Eventually the New Warriors and the two Avengers recongregate in a clearing and call out Longshot's group, who emerge from the forest to stare them down. Miss America confronts her former teammates, calling them out for abandoning what they all stood for. Squirrel Girl replies that she doesn't know what she's talking about, and that Mojo was simply using them for ratings and eventually his own criminal enterprise.

More to Come...

Summary of Changes

While The New Warriors is a wholly original film in the Earth-11584 universe, with no counterpart in mainline continuity, this film does borrow some casting decisions from the now canceled New Warriors Television series on Freeform.

Cast List

Chosen Jacobs as Miles Morales/Spider-Man- A time traveler from an alternate 2039 who gained powers similar to the original Spider-Man due to being bitten by a genetically altered Spider. Throughout the film Miles attempts to come up with a new name for himself, as Peter Parker is still alive in this time frame.
Sophia Taylor Ali as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel- A Pakistani-American time traveler from an alternate 2039, who was subjected to the Terrigen Mists, awakening her Inhuman potential in the future and granting her shape altering abilities. Also the girlfriend of Miles Morales.
Alexander Ludwig as Teddy Altman/Hulkling- A Skrull-Human Hybrid from the alternate future of 2039 with shapeshifting powers and the enhanced strength of a Skrull. Also in a relationship with Wiccan, the first such overt portrayal of a same sex relationship in the MCU.
Tyler Posey as William Maximoff/Wiccan- The future son of the Scarlet Witch from an alternate 2039 who has vast potential in the Mystic Arts and acts as the unofficial leader of the team. Also in a relationship with Hulkling, the first such overt portrayal of a same sex relationship in the MCU.
Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch- A member of the Avengers called in to bring the Young Avengers under SHIELD's control. A future alternate version of herself is the mother of Wiccan.
Paul Bettany as The Vision- An android built by Tony Stark and a member of the Avengers.
Stephen Fry as Mojo Adams- A television executive who seeks to create the "New Warriors" as a new super hero reality show to replace his previous one.
Sofia Boutella as Rita Wayword- The personal assistant of Mojo Adams. Though she is not referred to as Spiral in the film, she does retain the mystical abilities of her comic books counterpart as revealed near film's end.
Douglas Booth as Arthur Centino/Longshot- A mutant with probability defying powers, and the leader of Mojo's former team of heroes turned "renegades." Like his Ultimate Marvel counterpart, his name is a tribute to Art Adams and Ann Nocenti, the original creators of the character.
Eiza Gonzalez as America Chavez/Miss America- A former member of Longshot's team and the only one to remain loyal to Mojo following their split.
Xolo Mariduena as Sam Alexander/Nova- An Arizona teenager who found the Nova Corps helmet of fallen hero Rhomann Dey, and now has access to the Nova Force powers.
Adam Copeland as Whirlwind- A mutant with the power to turn his body into a living whirlwind and create tornadic vortices, who's fight against Wiccan and company is what seemingly attracts the attention of Mojo.

In addition, Robert Downey Jr. has a cameo in a post-credits scene. Calum Worthy, Milana Vayntrub & Jeremy Tardy also appear as Speedball, Squirrel Girl and Night Thrasher, members of Longshot's team who have joined him on the run. Kellan Lutz also appears as the villain Blockbuster early on in the film. Chris O'Donnell appears as SHIELD agent Glenn Talbot, reprising his role from The Incredible Hulk 2. Travis Fimmel plays Fred Myers, aka the super villain Boomerang.

Reception

Coming Soon

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 The group's discussion takes a backseat as they disperse to find Longshot and the former Champions team holed up in the woods. Vision and Scarlet Witch tag along, still trying to talk reason to the Young Avengers, but agree not to call in SHIELD or other Avengers into the fold. We learn a bit about Longshot and his reasoning for leaving Mojo's employ, as Miss America says that he and the former teammates of Night Thrasher, Speedball and Squirrel Girl were engaging in espionage for the Maggia and rogue nations. Wanda asks America why SHIELD wasn't notified of this, and Mojo chimes in through a radio transmitter that they did contact SHIELD, but that Tony Stark wanted nothing to do with him or his information. Before long the group reaches a wooded area inside a national park, departing the chopper they were on (and Wiccan grumbling that a portal would have been faster). The group spreads out to track down Longshot and his group, but we can see that they are being watched from above, as several squirrels move about through the trees.
+The group is quickly ambushed one by one by Longshot's forces, who engage in hit and run battles with the superior number of heroes. Eventually the New Warriors and the two Avengers recongregate in a clearing and call out Longshot's group, who emerge from the forest to stare them down. Miss America confronts her former teammates, calling them out for abandoning what they all stood for. Squirrel Girl replies that she doesn't know what she's talking about, and that Mojo was simply using them for ratings and eventually his own criminal enterprise.
 ''More to Come...''