Crossbones is, for all intents and purposes, the Bane to Captain America’s Batman; he’s a formidable adversary that “breaks” the hero. For Bane, it meant literally breaking Batman’s back, and for Crossbones, it means shooting and killing Steve Rogers at the end of Civil War. It’s long been rumored that such a story would be adapted for the MCU, and that Sebastian Stan (who has a nine-picture deal) will abandon his Winter Soldier moniker and pick up Steve’s shield to be the next Captain America. Grillo’s comments add some weight to those speculations.
Of course, no Marvel film has been a direct translation of the comic book material. They usually take inspiration from the books but pave their own cinematic path. So, even if Crossbones does show up again, it doesn’t mean he’ll serve the same function. In any case, I can’t wait to find out.
It might be some time before we see Frank Grillo’s Crossbones again though, as next on Marvel’s slate is Avengers: Age of Ultron on May 1st, 2015, followed by Ant-Man a few months later on July 17th. Perhaps we’ll see Grillo again when Captain America: Civil War hits theaters on May 6th, 2016? I can only hope.