Reflections on 10 Years of Marvel Studios’ ‘Captain America: Civil War’ with the Directors

Whose side are you on, a decade later? 

May 6 marks the 10-year anniversary of Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Civil War, the explosive showdown between Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) that threatened to rip apart the Avengers forever. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the 2016 film sent shockwaves through the Marvel Cinematic Universe, inspired by the watershed Marvel Comics event of the same name. 

Ten years on, the legacy of Civil War still lingers. 

“It was a lot of work on a crafting level, this idea that you can take two heroes and make them completely opposed to one another in their objectives in the film,” Anthony Russo says. “[You need to] make both of them relatable, but both of them flawed. That took a lot of deft work on the part of Markus and McFeely, of course, to execute that. But I think it’s testament to the fact that it worked. Ten years later, both Tony Stark and Steve Rogers remain empathetic and relatable. You’ll see to this day, people are divided over who was more relatable.” 

Civil War is packed with memorable moments — from that jaw-dropping airport battle to the final emotional clash between Steve, Tony, and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan). The film also introduced two new faces, both pivotal to the future of the MCU: Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. Steve and Tony may be the backbone of Civil War’s story, but T’Challa and Peter are its beating heart, and the Russos say that without the introduction of those two characters, Civil War would never work. 

“Spider-Man’s job in that film is to be the naïve rookie who undercuts the intensity of what’s happening in that film,”  Joe Russo explains. “Black Panther’s job in the movie was to be this radical outside force that heightens the intensity of what’s happening. They’re there for very different reasons… The crazy stew of that film doesn’t work without them complementing each other.” 

Still, Spider-Man’s involvement in Civil War wasn’t guaranteed. Because of complicated rights issues, the creative team initially wasn’t sure whether they could include him in the script. But they and writers Markus and McFeely couldn’t imagine Civil War without everyone’s favorite web-slinging wall-crawler. Joe Russos remember auditioning many potential Peters, but they knew Holland was the one “the minute he walked in the room.” (Holland was still a teenager when he auditioned, and he famously showed off his gymnastic abilities in the screen test, improvising a perfect flip.) 

But it wasn’t until filming began that the Russos realized just how perfect Holland’s casting was. They remember shooting Holland’s very first scene in the film, where Peter returns home to find his idol Tony Stark sitting in his apartment in Queens with Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). Downey and Holland carefully rehearsed the sequence together, and the Russos watched as the two actors transformed into real-life versions of Iron Man and Spider-Man — the veteran professional offering advice for the talented newcomer. 

“[Robert’s] gift to Tom Holland on that movie was that introduction scene,” Joe Russo explains. “We’re very prescriptive in a lot of ways. We had a very strong idea of blocking and how we wanted to see the scene unfold because we’d been working on the script for a year up that point. We wanted to make sure we hit the story beats we needed to hit in a way that was going to help the entire film. But Downey started rehearsing with [Tom], and I remember [Anthony] and I receded for a minute. We just watched for a half hour as Robert encouraged Tom to make certain decisions that he knew would win Tom the scene. It was a star-making turn. It was watching the biggest movie star in the world encourage someone who’s about to become one of the biggest movie stars in the world.” 

“One of the greatest things you can do for an actor is put them in a scene with Robert Downey Jr.,” Anthony Russo adds. “It’s an amazing creative stimulus.” 

“He was coaching Tom through that scene with his vast experience,” Joe Russo continues. “The super generous component of it was that he allowed Tom to steal the scene, when it’s Robert’s job to steal every scene that he’s in.” 

That creative generosity is part of why the Russos are so excited for fans to see Downey tackle a new role in the MCU, starring as the legendary Victor Von Doom in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday (in theaters December 18, 2026). It may seem like an unexpected to choice to go from playing of Marvel’s greatest heroes to one of its most notorious villains. But the Russos say that Downey has always been interested in exploring the unexpected  — just as Captain America: Civil War was an unexpected new chapter for Tony Stark. 

“I think that it’s a crazy idea to go to Robert — who was coming off of a redemption arc where he suddenly became a movie star in the world of Iron Man — and us saying, ‘Hey, crazy idea, what if Iron Man becomes a villain in this movie [Civil War]?’” Joe Russo remembers. “If he were playing it safe, he would have said, ‘Absolutely not. You’re crazy: I just build this character up. Why would I want to risk reputational damage to the character?’ [But] he loved the story. He loved the fact that it was a curveball for the audience. He believes in surprises, as we do. And the movie wouldn’t have got made if he didn’t say yes.” 

Watch Captain America: Civil War, streaming now on Disney+. And catch Avengers: Doomsday only in theaters, beginning December 18, 2026.