If someone took bets on which, if any, Avenger was going to appear in Captain America: Brave New World, the odds-on favorite would be Bucky. Bucky, played by Sebastian Stan, and Sam Wilson, played by Anthony Mackie, have a Marvel bromance going back almost a decade to the third Captain America film, Civil War. They’ve faced off ever since and, of course, appeared together in 2021 Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
So when Bucky shows up at a crucial point in the new film it’s a surprise, but not really. Everyone assumed he’d show up at some point, it was just a question of when. And, apparently, that question was something the team behind the movie struggled with too.
“There was always going to be a scene calling back to Sam’s history [in the MCU], and there were a few different permutations of it,” Brave New World director Julius Onah told Variety. “Bucky has always been there from the first draft that I was involved with, but in slightly different positions in the movie. The question just became what’s the most interesting and surprising way to see him? At some points, he was there in the very beginning of the movie. At some points, it was just at the very end of the movie. But then ultimately [the scene] became something that is a really fun surprise and also an emotional moment that helps move Sam along in his story. I think that we landed on a place that was really fun and exciting and emotional.”
In the film, Bucky arrives after the battle above Celestial Island as Sam is watching over his injured friend, Joaquin (Danny Ramirez). Bucky consoles him, gives him the confidence to keep fighting, and then we learn he’s in an running for a Congressional seat. One that, by the time Thunderbolts comes around, he’ll have won.
Seeing Sam and Bucky on screen together always makes a project better and Brave New World is no exception. Their quick banter reminds us what we loved about all these characters in the first place and, putting in the text of the movie, gives it more emotional weight. Here’s hoping Sam can return the cameo favor in May in Thunderbolts.
Head over to Variety for more from Onah. Captain America: Brave New World is now in theaters.
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