War is coming in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Captain America: Civil War will see previously allied heroes facing off against each other in battle, as a legislative act to ensure all superhuman activity is regulated by the government splits the Avengers down the middle, with Captain America and Tony Stark leading rival teams into an ideological battle. Filming has already concluded on the hugely anticipated film, but it was conceived a long time ago. Marvel Studios have a definitive plan in place for their Marvel Cinematic Universe up until 2019 already and, if hearsay is to be believed, they have a loose plan in place up to 2028, so it's no surprise that Civil War was planned years back. The evidence of that planning is clear if you just take the time to go back through the previous movies in the MCU. As far back as Phase One, hints were being dropped that superhuman activity was going to be regulated and that tempers were going to tip the Avengers over the edge and into battle with each other. In this article, we'll take a look back through some of the seeds that were planted on screen for 2016's biggest comic book movie event (some of which came before fans knew about it, some of which came after). Here are the ten biggest moments of foreshadowing for Captain America: Civil War.
Honourable Mention: The Accords (Ant-Man Mid-Credits Scene)
To foreshadow something means to indicate a future event and, given that this particular entry is actually taken from said future event, it doesn't really qualify. However, due to the fact that it was clearly meant to tease audiences, it gets an honourable mention. During the credits of 2015's Ant-Man, audiences were shown Bucky Barnes AKA the Winter Soldier trapped in some kind of vice-like mechanism. He is approached by Steve Rogers AKA Captain America and Sam Wilson AKA Falcon, who discuss ways to free him. Bringing in Tony Stark to help is briefly discussed, but Captain America says that's not possible due to "the accords" - the government-enforced regulations that will come into play during Captain America: Civil War, which are the Marvel Cinematic Universe's version of the Superhuman Registration Act from the comic books - and Falcon replies that he "knows a guy" (Ant-Man, who looks set for a ringer role). It's a unique mid-credits scene in the sense that it was actually a scene taken from another movie - the aforementioned Captain America; Civil War - but it was a sign of things to come and it left a number of questions that will ensure fans are chomping at the bit by 2016.