Captain America Takes on Shakespeare: ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Anthony Mackie Returns to Broadway as Macbeth

Anthony Mackie has spent much of the past decade as one of Marvel’s most recognizable faces. After years playing Sam Wilson, he now carries the shield as Captain America, with ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ arriving on December 18 and ‘Avengers: Secret Wars’ still to come.

But long before he joined the MCU, Mackie was a stage actor. The Juilliard-trained performer was last on Broadway in Martin McDonagh’s ‘A Beheading in Spokane’ in 2010, starring alongside Christopher Walken, Sam Rockwell and Zoe Kazan under director John Crowley.

Now, after 16 years away from the boards, he’s finally going back. Mackie will star as Shakespeare’s most notorious villain, Macbeth, in a new Broadway production beginning in spring 2027, the actor revealed to Deadline’s Baz Bamigboye.

For Mackie, the role is deeply personal. “I started as a theater kid. And doing theater was my passion since I was seven years old,” Mackie told Deadline, adding that not many people can say they’ve played Macbeth on Broadway.

He also described the opportunity as a monumental feat, not only in his career but in his life. It will be his first time playing the once loyal general who, consumed by ambition, plots against King Duncan alongside his bloodthirsty wife.

Mackie believes the story feels especially timely. He explained that Macbeth’s ambition got the best of him and argued that today is a poignant moment to tell the story because “we’re living in the day and age of ambition.”

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The Broadway run is a transfer of director Max Webster’s acclaimed London production. That version premiered at the Donmar Warehouse in 2023 with David Tennant and Cush Jumbo, before moving to the West End’s Harold Pinter Theatre for a sold-out 11-week season.

The staging became known for its innovative use of sound. Mackie said the microphones allow audiences to hear every whisper and feel every emotion, so instead of performers projecting to the back of the house, the house comes to the stage.

Rehearsals begin in February 2027, with previews starting in late March or early April. The production runs until July, though the theater has yet to be announced. Mackie’s renewed passion for theater was sparked during his time filming in London. He reconnected with his longtime friend and mentor Wendell Pierce there, and spent his downtime catching West End shows.

To prepare for the role, he’s turning to a familiar face. Mackie is working with his former Juilliard teacher Richard Feldman for coaching ahead of rehearsals. The rest of the company is still taking shape. Webster and the casting team are still searching for an actress to play Lady Macbeth and other key roles, and Mackie expects the production to feature an entirely American cast.

The timing raises questions for Marvel fans. Mackie still has MCU commitments to complete, and he told Deadline he plans to finish his ‘Secret Wars’ work once his run as Macbeth wraps. For now, Shakespeare’s tragedy is top of mind for the 48-year-old actor. After years in a superhero suit, he’s ready to show audiences a very different kind of power struggle.

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