Anthony Mackie Needs More Roles

Anthony Mackie is one busy dude. First it was Captain America: The Winter Soldier, then he'll be alongside Chris Evans again in A Many Splintered Thing, and now Anthony Mackie has been cast in an as-yet-to-be-named Christmas comedy movie with Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The movie will star Rogen, Gordon-Levitt, and Mackie as three childhood best friends who reunite for their annual tradition of going out in New York City on Christmas Eve. It sounds promising: It's penned by the same writer as 50/50, and stars your imaginary celebrity boyfriend, JGL. And there's even more promising news — Mackie will have a leading role in the movie.

It's fantastic that Mackie will be front and center with his fellow leads, since he's had a career full of supporting, token black guy roles. He played secondary parts in Captain America: The Winter Soldier and the The Hurt Locker, and simply portrayed a friend in A Many Splintered Thing. But now, he'll be in the spotlight, where he belongs.

It's clear that Mackie's career is taking a leading-man turn, and it's about time. He's been cast in a new Jimi Hendrix biopic, as well, and his involvement in the Marvel franchise means that there's a good chance his character, the Falcon, will eventually get a film of his own.

Mackie has proved himself on screen time and time again and it's terrific he's at last landing lead parts. Hopefully, we'll be seeing more and more of him in the future.

Editor's note: A previous version of this piece inaccurately assumed that Mackie would have a smaller role than Rogen or Gordon-Levitt, and would therefore be relegated to playing a token character. He will, however, be a leading man, as Seth Rogen pointed out. Bustle regrets this error.