Understandably, many fans feel that Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier was short-changed by both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Though there was much fanfare in the former movie about him receiving a shiny new Wakandan prosthetic arm, he only ended up playing a minor role in the climactic battle. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he played even less of a role in Endgame, turning up in the colossal final fight just to shoot a gun ineffectually and then be overlooked as the successor to the Captain America mantle as Steve chose Sam Wilson/Falcon instead.
Now, Stan’s opened up a bit on his take on how things panned out and specifically, Cap’s decision to stay in the past with Peggy and leave behind his best friend. According to the actor, Bucky was actually happy for Steve, as it was the life that he felt his buddy deserved after all he’d been through.
“He was happy for him, obviously. This man has fought for this woman for a really long time. In my opinion, he was happy,” Stan shared.
Fair enough, though it’ll certainly be interesting to see how Bucky adjusts to a world without Steve – or at least, without the Steve he’s always known – when the Falcon and Winter Soldier TV show premieres. Plot details for the series haven’t been revealed just yet, but we’ve been told it’ll be a spy thriller in the vein of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and focus on how the titular heroes are getting on with Rogers now having given up the mantle of Cap.
Speaking of which, while we don’t imagine Steve getting another solo outing ever again, Avengers: Endgame still left the door open for further appearances from the character, be it a cameo from his older self, or maybe some kind of spinoff focusing on his life with Peggy. If Chris Evans does indeed turn up again in the MCU, Falcon and Winter Soldier would probably be the most opportune place for it to happen, but for now, we’ll just have to wait and see what Marvel’s got in store for The First Avenger.