Funny reactions erupt as the first official image of The Leader in ‘CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD’ drops

The Marvel fandom thrives on hype, chaos, and a bit of panic. So, when the first official image of The Leader in Captain America: Brave New World dropped, it wasn’t just a simple reveal; it was an event. And by event, we mean the internet immediately combusted into a frenzy of memes, jokes, and general confusion.

For those who need a refresher, The Leader (aka Samuel Sterns) was last seen in The Incredible Hulk (2008), played by Tim Blake Nelson. He’s got an abnormally large brain, a questionable sense of fashion, and a villainous streak that makes him one of Hulk’s biggest threats. But instead of Marvel fans saying, “Wow, what a menacing villain!” they just screamed. Loudly. And Twitter turned into a war zone of unfiltered reactions.

The Leader’s First Look Sparks Instant Internet Chaos

The second the image hit the timeline, fans had opinions. And when fans have opinions, they express them the only way they know how: through memes.

Some were in absolute shock, reacting with gifs of men screaming into the abyss.

Others defended his, uh, unconventional look, arguing, “He doesn’t have to look handsome for you to fall in love with him.” (A noble effort, but let’s be real, no one was asking for that.)

Then there were those who saw the image and immediately heard the deafening sound of a "career-ending noise."

One particularly confused fan asked, “What provoked him to scream like that? 😂”

while another person, entirely over it, simply posted a gif of a seal aggressively flapping its flippers.

And of course, there were those who just outright declared, “This dude annoys me so much.”

Basically, The Leader’s reveal didn’t just break the internet; it shattered it into a million tiny, horrified pieces.

Marvel fans are many things, but one thing they will never be is normal. The memes that followed were some of the best the fandom has produced in a while.

One recurring theme? Pure, primal fear. Fans compared his look to everything from cursed CGI creations to characters from 2000s-era video games. One person said it looked like he walked straight out of an early PlayStation cutscene, and honestly? They’re not wrong. The uncanny valley effect was in full force, and no one was prepared.

Others took a more philosophical approach, treating the leader’s face as a test of personal growth. Some even argued that his look was true to the comics, though that didn’t stop them from making jokes about it.

At the end of the day, Marvel fans will watch Captain America: Brave New World no matter what The Leader looks like. They might complain; they might meme it to oblivion, but they’ll be seated when the movie drops. Because that’s just how the fandom works.

And let’s be honest, would we want it any other way?