Warning! This article contains major spoilers for Captain America: Brave New World

Doctor Samuel Sterns returned to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the Leader in Captain America: Brave New World, though he actually crossed paths with one other Avenger before the events of the film – and it was not Bruce Banner. In the mainstream Marvel Comics universe, the Leader is one of the most iconic members of The Hulk’s rogue’s gallery, and his MCU counterpart was set up 17 years ago. The MCU finally gave Sterns his long-awaited villainous debut in Brave New World, though he had one other appearance after the events of 2008’s The Incredible Hulk.

In the MCU, Sterns is a professor who tries to help Bruce Banner rid himself of his Hulk alter ego. At the end of The Incredible Hulk, Emil Blonsky forces Sterns to give him similar gamma radiation-induced powers, resulting in him becoming The Abomination. Blonsky’s violent transformation leaves Sterns wounded and infected by one of Bruce Banner’s blood samples, transforming his cranium. Brave New World addresses Sterns’s discovery and path to villainy, but one other story set after The Incredible Hulk saw Sterns meeting another MCU hero.

Samuel Sterns’ First Encounter With An Avenger As The Leader Was Actually With Black Widow

Samuel Sterns’s first appearance after The Incredible Hulk is in the 2012 comic series Marvel’s The Avengers Prelude: Fury’s Big Week. Following The Abomination’s rampage through Harlem, Black Widow discovers Sterns in his laboratory. Thanks to his newfound abilities, Sterns recognized Black Widow’s Russian background from only the slightest indicator of an accent. Sterns attempted to recruit Black Widow, requesting her ᴀssistance in eluding potential pursuers, to which she responded by wounding him with a gunsH๏τ to the leg.

The Leader Was In SHIELD Custody Before Being Used By Thaddeus Ross

Fury’s Big Week also adds to Sterns’s backstory, revealing that he was held in SHIELD custody following his brief encounter with Black Widow. Sterns was kept in a stasis tube and studied in what was known as “Project Mr. Blue,” which could fit into his established history in Brave New World. Seth Voelker – the leader of SERPENT who goes by the Sidewinder moniker – notes that he also discovered Samuel Sterns following The Hulk and Abomination’s battle in Harlem. Voelker and his US Army unit likely arrived with SHIELD forces to arrest Sterns after his encounter with Black Widow.

Project Mr. Blue might also factor into Brave New World as well – along with 2012’s The Avengers. Black Widow implies that SHIELD kept General Thaddeus Ross from tracking down Bruce Banner, with SHIELD perhaps handing Sterns over to Ross to convince him to abandon his pursuit. Project Mr. Blue would have led SHIELD – and thus Ross to discover Sterns’ penchant for calculating probability, leading to his 16-year imprisonment and turn to villainy by the events of Captain America: Brave New World.

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