Highlights
- In the movie "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," it is revealed that Peggy Carter has children and Steve Rogers is their father.
- The writers of "Avengers: Endgame" confirmed that Steve is the father of Peggy's children and that they likely have super soldier DNA.
- While Steve's children have not appeared in the MCU, in alternate universes he has a son named James Rogers and a daughter named Sarah, both of whom inherit his superhero abilities.
It's been years since fans watched Captain America return the Infinity Stones to their rightful places in time and take his happily ever after in Avengers: Endgame. It's been even longer since they learned Peggy Carter married somebody Cap "saved" in World War II and had children. With that bit of information and Endgame's ending, fans rightfully had questions.
Does Cap have kids in the MCU? Fans got to see Wanda and Vision raise kids on Disney Plus' WandaVision while Avengers: Age of Ultron showed Hawkeye with a whole entire secret family. It seems like the natural progression of events to see Cap, the most wholesome and traditional Avenger, to raise a family of little super soldiers who would carry his mantle.
Peggy's Children Mentioned in The Winter Soldier
One of the burning questions fans had before The Winter Soldier released in theaters was whether Peggy was still in the picture or not. They had that question answered pretty early on in the film when Steve goes and visits her, revealing that visiting her is a normal routine of his. The other thing revealed in that scene is that Peggy lived a full and complete life once Cap went into the ice.
As the camera pans away from Peggy while talking to Steve, the audience catches a glimpse of some family photos. In these photos is Peggy with her children: One boy and one girl. What's never shown is Peggy's husband and the father of the children. At the time, it was disappointing for fans to think of Peggy finding somebody else. Not because she should never move on from Steve. That's unrealistic. Fans wanted to see the two together. However, that's not even what happens in the comics. Captain America, while famously having feelings for Peggy, eventually ends up with Peggy's niece Sharon. Comics are weird.
The movie attempts to rectify this odd entanglement by closing a loop and sending Steve back in time to have his dance with his gal, giving Steve his happily ever after.
Was Steve the Father of Peggy's Kids?
It left a lot of open-ended questions that need answering when Cap decided to go back and have a life with Peggy. Did it create a different timeline? Where was the TVA? Was Steve the husband Peggy talked about in Captain America: The Winter Soldier? Luckily, the Endgame writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely took some of the guessing out of the equation by answering some questions back in 2019.
McFeely told The Hollywood Reporter:
It was always our intention that he was the father of those two children. But again, there are time travel loopholes for that.
Markus went on to add:
It does introduce the idea that there are two children who have somewhat super soldier DNA.
This does lead to more burning questions. Looking at Cap's age at the conclusion of Endgame after he returned and passed on his shield to Sam, his kids would have to be adults. If Steve passed on any super soldier DNA, it's likely that they would be out there fighting the good fight. Steve and Peggy each had a strong sense of duty they undoubtedly instilled in their children. Since Marvel hasn't hinted at any projects starring the kids of Steve Rogers (unless they appear in Captain America 4: New World Order), it's likely the head creatives decided the Rogers children went on living mundane lives. Maybe they help the world by working for a non-profit.
Who are Steve's Kids in Other Media?
Whether Steve Rogers has kids in the MCU or not, he does have kids in alternate universes. However, in neither of the realities where they exist is Peggy their mother. Unlike the MCU, Captain America never got his dance with her. One thing is for certain, though: Steve Rogers' kids definitely do not work for a non-profit.
James Rogers, named after Cap's best friend Bucky, first appeared in 2008's Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow where the children of the Avengers take up their mantles to defend Earth. James retained all the same abilities as his father due to the super soldier DNA. Unfortunately, Steve didn't have a chance to raise his son since he fell in battle against Ultron. Upon defeating the original Captain America, Ultron claimed the vibranium shield for himself. Luckily, Tony Stark survived to keep the children safe and eventually created James his own shield out of energy. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fans saw Coulson use a similar contraption in the show's third season.
Unlike James who doesn't exist in the comics, Steve's daughter Sarah does. In a 1998 issue of What If..., Captain America and the other Marvel heroes never left Battleworld, instead they called a truce and raised their own families. In an unusual twist, Captain America and Rogue from the X-Men end up forming a relationship and have a child. This iteration of Rogue is vastly different from her 616 counterpart as everyone refers to her as Carol and she was capable of birthing a child. When your mutant power is the ability to drain a person's life essence from touching them, intimacy is a little challenging.
Sarah ends up with a similar powerset to her mom with super strength, flight, and superhuman durability. However, she received all of her morals and principles from dear old dad. When she and other super-powered teenagers end up in a universe dominated by Sentinels, she insists on staying until they bring peace to the planet or die trying. That's the "I can do this all day" energy of Steve Rogers.