EMPIRE – Every good hero needs a wingman. And as The Falcon, Sam Wilson was always there to provide that for Steve Rogers’ Captain America. Now, with Wilson stepping up as the new Cap – post-Avengers: Endgame and The Falcon And The Winter Soldier – he’s got a wingman of his own. As introduced in Falcon on Disney+, Wilson’s brand-spanking-new star-spangled Cap has a Falcon of his own, Danny Ramirez’s Joaquín Torres, strapping on his own set of high-tech soaring gear to fight for justice.

While the prospect of two flying heroes brings much opportunity for big-screen spectacle (yes, Anthony Mackie is still donning his wings too), it’ll also provide some heart in a Marvel movie aiming for political-thriller intrigue. “There’s this incredible big brother/little brother dynamic between them,” director Julius Onah tells Empire of the new Cap-Falcon relationship. “It’s going to be one of the key emotional centres of the film.”

As they prepare to face all kinds of subterfuge – and Harrison Ford’s Red-Hulk-ed-up President Ross – Sam and Joaquín will need to have each other’s backs. And by all accounts, they’re ready to step it up when the action comes calling. “These guys are incredible fighters,” says Onah. “And Sam has been there and back. He’s got some tricks up his sleeve, and over the course of the film there are things he comes to learn that become other tools in his arsenal, when he’s facing even the most impossible of threats.” In other words: he could do this all day.