Apparently the Bucky Barnes floodgates have opened. It was just a little while ago that the first, albeit grainy, picture of the superhero sidekick came online, and now director Joe Johnston has spilled a bit about what we can expect from the character in Captain America: The First Avenger.
The Los Angeles Times recently spoke with Johnston about the character and he assures us that the character won't be the goofy tag-along character that was first introduced back in the 1940s. Instead, the portrayal, by actor Sebastian Stan, goes in a much darker direction and is no longer the Robin to Captain America's Batman. Talking about how Stan was originally a candidate for the lead role, the director saw a "bad-boy" side to him that he didn't feel fit the all-American Cap, but could introduce something new to the sidekick.
There has also been some significant changes to the origin story of both characters. In the movie, Steve Rogers and Bucky were both orphans that grew up together who decide to serve their country during World War II. While Bucky has no problem joining the service and is sent overseas, Steve is seen as being too sickly. As a result, Steve volunteers for the secret Super Soldier experiment that turns him into Captain America. As a result, Cap is no longer a father figure to Bucky, but rather closer to an equal.
While comic purists may end up being disappointed by this, it truly is a necessary change. Playing Bucky like Burt Ward from the old Adam West Batman television series would never fly today and would absolutely tank the movie. If they are going in the darker direction, however, one must wonder if we might see a Winter Soldier movie some time in the future.
The article also contains a much clearer look at Sebastian Stan as Bucky, part of which you can see above. For the rest of the picture, head on over to The Los Angeles Times.
