Sebastian Stan played James “Bucky” Barnes in Captain America: The First Avenger, a character many remember as Cap’s teenage sidekick from the comics. In the film, Marvel gave their relationship a bit of a more realistic spin by making Bucky the same age as Steve Rogers, and set us up for quite the reunion in The Winter Soldier.
You see, Bucky seemingly died in The First Avenger, but is returning as the titular villain in The Winter Soldier after being found brainwashed and turned into a killing machine with a mechanical arm. If Marvel has their way, The Winter Soldier won’t be Bucky’s last appearance, either. While speaking to Newsarama about the role, Stan revealed that he has a nine-picture deal with the studio, which means that he’s locked in, contractually speaking, for more films than Chris Evans.
So, what could this mean for Bucky’s future? Well, it means that he definitely won’t bite the dust in The Winter Soldier, and if Marvel decides to go with the stories established in the comics, he could end up taking over as Captain America somewhere down the line. Evans has revealed that he’s definitely going to complete all of the films in his contract, but hasn’t made any guarantees beyond that. The Winter Soldier marks his third film, while Avengers: Age of Ultron and the recently announced Captain America 3 will make five. Presumably, Avengers 3 will be his sixth and final movie, and unless he signs on for more (a la Robert Downey Jr.), he might either die, or pass the torch to his former sidekick.
Stan being contracted for so many Marvel movies means that we will definitely be seeing more of him from here on out. My guess is his brainwashing is eradicated by the end of The Winter Soldier and he rejoins the ranks of the good guys. It’s worth noting, however, that being contracted for nine films doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to appear in that many. It’s just a way for the studio to lock down the actor for when they’ll need him in the future, in an effort to avoid any future contract re-negotiations (which we saw happen with Downey Jr.).
In a separate interview with Access Hollywood during the Captain America: The Winter Soldier premiere, Stan was asked how he felt about Captain America 3 going head-to-head with Batman Vs. Superman in 2016. Both films are currently scheduled for release on the same day, and the question on everyone’s mind is which film will come out on top. Stan, of course, is confident in Marvel, saying:
“I mean, all you really have to do to know the answer to that question is just look at the track record of Marvel Vs. DC… ‘Green Lantern’! [Laughs] You know, I’m biased! I dunno. I’m on this side. Listen, I’m with the [Russo] brothers. They did a great film. If they want to do another film, and I’ll be part of it […], then I’m game!”
It’s not surprising that he’s siding with his employers on this one, but I don’t know if it’s completely fair to point to Green Lantern as your example in this case. It is probably smarter to look at the monumental success of the Dark Knight trilogy, and the $668 million box office haul that Man of Steel pulled in last year. Add DC’s two juggernauts in the same film, along with Wonder Woman, and Cap 3 has quite the competition for audience dollars.
In any case, it will be interesting to see how the box office battle shakes out. We’re still two years away though, so anything could happen. As far as Stan’s nine-picture deal with Marvel, that leads into some potentially intriguing territory, and I’m curious to see where his character may go from here and how they hope to fit him into the ever-expanding roster of Marvel characters.
What would you like to see happen Bucky in future films? And what do you think of what he had to say about the 2016 release date battle? Let us know in the comments below!