Since Avengers: Endgame, the 2019 box-office behemoth that made $2.799 billion at the global box office, Marvel has drawn criticism for poor commercial performances of some of its releases. Sebastian Stan, who portrays Bucky Barnes / Winter Soldier in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will reprise the role in the upcoming feature Thunderbolts*, recently defended the popular franchise against such sentiments.
Thunderbolts* star Sebastian Stan says Marvel movies are easy to ‘pick on’
In a new interview, Sebastian Stan came to the defense of the franchise he has been part of since 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger. The Apprentice actor essayed the role in several subsequent film and TV entries in the franchise, including Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021). He also provided the voice for the character in multiple episodes of the animated series What If…?
When speaking to Variety, Stan remarked that “It’s become really convenient to pick on” Marvel movies. He added, “And that’s fine. Everyone’s got an opinion. But they’re a big part of what contributes to this business and allow us to have smaller movies as well. This is an artery traveling through the system of this entire machinery that’s Hollywood. It feeds in so many more ways than people acknowledge. Sometimes I get protective of it because the intention is really f****** good. It’s just f****** hard to make a good movie over and over again.”
In the same interview, Stan compared Thunderbolts* to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. He even compared the part his character is supposed to play in the narrative to that of Randle McMurphy. According to Stan, Thunderbolts* “was kind of like ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ — a guy coming into this group that was chaotic and degenerate, and somehow finding a way to unite them.”
Originally a novel by Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was adapted into a celebrated multi-Oscar-winning 1975 film. Jack Nicholson played McMurphy in it and won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance.
Meanwhile, Thunderbolts* premieres in the US theaters on May 2, 2025.
