- NOTE: This article is about the incarnation of the Winter Soldier from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The mainstream version can be found here: Winter Soldier (Marvel).
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| “ | I know who killed Fury. Most of the intelligence community doesn't believe he exists, the ones who do call him the Winter Soldier. He's credited with over two dozen assassinations in the last fifty years. | „ |
| ~ Black Widow to Captain America about the Winter Solider. |
| “ | Who the hell is Bucky? | „ |
| ~ Bucky's first words as the Winter Soldier to Captain America. |
James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, later known as the Winter Soldier and White Wolf, is a major character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
He is a former U.S. army sergeant who fought alongside Captain America/Steve Rogers, his best friend, against the Nazis and HYDRA during World War II until his apparent death.
However, unknown to everyone, Bucky secretly survived and was brainwashed by Arnim Zola into serving HYDRA as an assassin, killing the organization's targets as the enigmatic Winter Soldier. Decades later, Captain America brings the Winter Soldier back to his senses and Bucky turns over a new leaf, but his past still haunts him.
He is played by Sebastian Stan, who also played Chase Collins in The Covenant, Blaine in Hot Tub Time Machine, Justin Lafferty in Law & Order, Lee Bodecker in The Devil all the Time, Nick Fowler in The 355 and Brendan in Fresh.
Biography[]
Captain America: The First Avenger[]
Bucky is first seen in the film as a sergeant in the US Army. He sees Steve being beat up by a bully and comforts him after a brief confrontation. He takes Steve and two girls to a World of Tomorrow Exhibit and departs to be deployed. He is next seen where he is being held captive by HYDRA and stripped to a chair. Captain America rescues him, only to find himself meeting Johann Schmidt, better known as the Red Skull. Afterwards, Captain America recruits him as his second-in-command of the Howling Commandos team to square off against Red Skull's HYDRA henchmen and destroy every HYDRA base in the overseas area. He is last seen when Captain America and his team are deployed to bring HYDRA scientist Arnim Zola into custody. When a HYDRA goon fires at Bucky with the Captain's shield, he instead is sent on the side of the train. Before Captain America can save Bucky, he falls to his apparent death into an icy cold riverside.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier[]
It turns out that Bucky survived his fall, but was found by HYDRA and brainwashed into an assassin operative of HYDRA as The Winter Soldier. He is first seen when Nick Fury was being chased by rogue policemen sent by Pierce to kill him. He shoots a grenade at Fury's car and made it fly into the air. He then follows Fury to Captain America's apartment and severely wounds him. Captain America throws his shield at the Winter Soldier, but he reflects it and throws it back at Captain America.
The Black Widow reveals that she had a recent encounter with the Winter Soldier and unveils that he is a ghost to most of the intelligence society. He is next shown when he is sent to Alexander Pierce's home to receive his next assignment. Pierce tells him that his next targets were to be Captain America and the Black Widow, who are attempting to discover Pierce's plan to use the SHIELD Helicarriers and target over a million people.
Afterwards, he attacks Rogers, Natasha Romanoff and Sam Wilson, who were driving while proceeding with their investigation of Jasper Sitwell and the revelation of HYDRA's plan. After he kills Sitwell, the Winter Soldier tries to fire a grenade at Rogers and Romanoff, but Rogers deflects it and it ends up destroying a bus. While engaging Black Widow, the Winter Soldier pursues her through the streets of Washington, DC before coming across Rogers. After a one-on-one duel, Rogers rips off his mask and discovers that the Winter Soldier is actually Bucky. Before he can raise his gun, Bucky is knocked to the ground by Wilson.
Back at the lair, the Winter Soldier starts to remember his past while trying to give Alexander Pierce a full report on his mission. Pierce then puts him into another brainwashing treatment making him forget everything from his past life, though this time, the brainwash effect not last long. During the climax, Winter Soldier fought Captain America, but the Helicarrier where they fought, along with everyone on board, crashes. Eventually, the brainwashing wears off. Regaining his senses, he rescues Captain America from drowning, before disappearing and takes Pierce with him.
In a post-credits scene, the Winter Soldier visits the Captain America exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution to learn of his past, hints a sign of possible redemption; with his memory back and the brainwash effect wore off, he is likely less evil in the end and he likely wants to meet his old friend.
Between Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Ant-Man[]
But beforehand, Bucky decides to return to Ideal Federal Savings Bank, where he falsely informs two scientists present that Captain America is dead. As the scientists relax momentarily, Barnes attacks and attempts to kill them and begins destroying much of the machinery which had been used to control and torture him for so many decades. However, as memories and images of past assassinations for HYDRA race through his mind, Barnes relents and flees to try and get away from his violent history and learn the truth about his past once and for all.
Ant-Man[]
In spite of his redemption by saving his old friend Steve, Bucky decides to go on the run from the government out of guilt for his crime when he was evil due to Pierce’s brainwashing. However, Sam and Steve manages to track him down in a remote location. At first, he decides to resist, but they anticipating this by trapping his cybernetic arm in a vice, making him defenseless and unable to fight. When realizing that Steve also comes along to hunt him, Bucky decides to accept his defeat. Steve then asks Bucky whether he knew who he was; Bucky replied that Steve's mother was Sarah Rogers. Rogers and Wilson discusses recruiting him, noting that they would not inform Tony Stark of Barnes' capture and that Wilson knows a guy who can assist them.
Captain America: Civil War[]
It's revealed that after his brainwashing into a Winter Soldier by HYDRA, five other soldiers were also brainwashed in the same way into other Winter Soldiers and locked and frozen due to fear that they would rampage and start the riot. HYDRA is also revealed to have arranged a fail-safe procedure in his brainwashing process in form of trigger words that would revert Barnes to his brainwashed self for a certain amount of time should he revert to his original good self and turn against them. It is also revealed that Bucky was the one HYDRA sent to cause the death of Howard and Maria Stark when they send him to get the Super Soldier serum from their car. He caused their car to crash and killed them.
Eventually, Bucky decides that it is best for him to return to cryo-sleep until his identity can be fully restored and is frozen in Wakanda.
Black Panther[]
Bucky makes a cameo appearance as he is released from cryo-sleep following the death of Erik Killmonger. He is seen trying to recover outside of the Wakanda hospital with the aid of Shuri, Black Panther's younger sister.
Avengers: Infinity War[]
Bucky returns, finally rid of his HYDRA brainwashing for good while awaiting the arrival of several more Avengers coming to Wakanda. Going by the name White Wolf, Bucky learns from the other Avengers that the alien warlord Thanos is plotting to collect all six Infinity Stones to wipe out half of the universe' populace. He also learned that Vision has the Mind Stone on his forehead and plans to have it removed so that Scarlet Witch can destroy it to foil Thanos' plot.
After Thanos collected five of the Infinity Stones, he assembles the Black Order and their army of Outriders to attack Wakanda. Along with the other Avengers and the Wakandan warriors, Bucky fights back against Thanos' forces in order to buy enough time for the Mind Stone to be removed and destroyed by Scarlet Witch. Unfortunately, an arriving Thanos uses the Time Stone to reverse this, allowing himself to take the Mind Stone while killing Vision. Thanos then uses the power of the Infinity Stones to wipe out half of the universe's populace, and Bucky ends up being disintegrated along with several other Avengers, much to Steve's distress.
Avengers: Endgame[]
Five years following the death wave, the surviving Avengers perfect a successful plot of travelling back in time to retrieve the Infinity Stones and used them to revive everyone who perished, including Bucky. However, the 2014 Thanos learns about this and travels to the present with his vast armies of the Black Order, Chitauri soldiers, Leviathans, and Sakaaran Mercenaries, intending to steal the Stones so that he can destroy the universe and rebuilt it in his own image. Fortunately, Bucky and the other revived heroes come to the rescue, allowing Iron Man to sacrifice himself by using the Stones to disintegrate Thanos and his forces for good.
Bucky later attends Stark's funeral along with the other Avengers before witnessing Captain America returning the Stones back to their proper timelines. He is eventually surprised to see that Captain America has returned to the present as an elderly man, passing on his shield to Sam Wilson. During Tony's funeral, he is as saddened as the others despite their history; showing that he remains haunted by the murders and other crimes he committed while under mind control.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier[]
In 2024, Barnes is living in Brooklyn, New York. He has been pardoned and attends government-mandated therapy, where he discusses his attempts to make amends for his time as the Winter Soldier, while also continuing to operate as an Avenger and taking down the remains of HYDRA. He has nightmares about his past, but is not forthcoming with his therapist about them. She notes that Barnes is isolating himself from his friends and has been ignoring texts from Sam Wilson. Barnes tells her that he made amends, including confronting a formerly Hydra-affiliated U.S. senator who he helps bring to justice. He also befriends an elderly Japanese man named Yori, the father of one of the Winter Soldier's victims, but doesn't tell him of their connection. Yori sets Barnes up on a date with a bartender named Leah, which ends quickly after she brings up Yori's deceased son, and Barnes leaves.
Barnes soon learns that John Walker has been named the new Captain America by the U.S. government to his outrage. Enraged that Wilson threw the shield away after Steve trusted him with it, Barnes goes to a USAF base to confront Wilson about this, expressing his disapproval about Wilson having surrendered Rogers' shield and making it clear he had no right to just give up the shield. Barnes joins Wilson in tracking down the Flag Smashers in Munich where they intercept the group smuggling medicine and attempt to rescue a supposed hostage that ends up being their leader, Karli Morgenthau. Barnes and Wilson are overwhelmed by Flag Smashers who are revealed to be super soldiers. Walker and his partner, Lemar Hoskins, come to their aid, although the Flag Smashers escape. Walker asks Barnes and Wilson to join him in aiding the Global Repatriation Council (GRC) to quash the ongoing violent post-Blip revolutions, but they refuse, Barnes showing negativity towards the man. Traveling to Baltimore, Barnes introduces Wilson to Isaiah Bradley, a veteran American super soldier Barnes fought during the Korean War, but he refuses to help them uncover information about additional super soldier serums due to his disdain for Barnes and having been imprisoned and experimented on by the government for thirty years. Barnes is arrested for missing a court-mandated therapy appointment, but is released when Walker intervenes.
Zemo and the Dora Milaje[]
Again refusing to work with Walker, Barnes suggests they visit Helmut Zemo, who is imprisoned in Berlin, to gather intelligence related to the super soldier Flag Smashers. Zemo, citing his hatred for super powered beings, agrees to help them. Barnes orchestrates a prison riot to help Zemo escape. Barnes, Zemo and Wilson travel to Madripoor in an effort to locate the source of the new super soldier serum. In a bar, Barnes pretends to once again be under mind control as the Winter Soldier, and dispatches numerous armed thugs. They are taken to high-ranking criminal, Selby, who reveals the Power Broker hired former Hydra scientist Dr. Wilfred Nagel to recreate the serum. Wilson's disguise is compromised and Selby orders her men to attack them but she is killed. Their savior, Sharon Carter (the Power Broker), has been living as a fugitive in Madripoor since 2016. She agrees to help them after Wilson offers to get her pardoned. They travel to Nagel's lab and confront him. He reveals that he made twenty vials of the serum and that Morgenthau stole them. Zemo unexpectedly kills Nagel and the lab is destroyed. Barnes, Wilson, and Carter fight bounty hunters until Zemo acquires a getaway car and they escape. Barnes, Zemo and Wilson travel to Latvia and Barnes recognizes Wakandan tracking devices. He confronts Dora Milaje Ayo, who demands Zemo.
Ayo gives Barnes eight hours to use Zemo before the Wakandans take him, as Zemo killed their king T'Chaka. When Ayo and the Dora Milaje come for Zemo, Walker refuses to hand him over, and Barnes intercedes, causing Ayo to use a failsafe that deactivates his vibranium arm.
Defeating the Flag Smashers[]
Walker, having taken a supersoldier serum and enraged by the death of his partner, Hoskins, uses his shield to kill one of the Flag Smashers in front of horrified bystanders, who film his actions. Wilson and Barnes demand the shield from Walker, starting a fight in which Walker destroys Wilson's wingsuit. The fight ends with Wilson and Barnes taking the shield and breaking Walker's arm. Barnes finds Zemo in Sokovia and hands him over to the Dora Milaje. Barnes later travels to Wilson's hometown in Louisiana to delivers a briefcase from the Wakandans to Wilson. He meets Wilson's sister, Sarah, and her two sons. After fixing the Wilson family's boat, Barnes and Wilson train with the shield and agree to move on from their pasts and work together. Barnes confesses that he was angry that Wilson gave away Captain America's shield because he feels like it is his last connection to the past, and apologizes for not considering the implications of giving the shield to a black man.
Barnes goes back to New York City and runs into Carter. He then fights against the Flag Smashers, as well as saving GRC hostages from arson. During a fight against Morgenthau, Barnes falls off the ledge to a riverbank. After Walker and the Flag Smashers do the same, Barnes helps Walker up and they join Wilson, who is in his new Captain America suit, to find the Flag Smashers after Georges Batroc helps them escape. Barnes and Walker ambush three of them and see them taken into custody. After the GRC members are rescued, Barnes listens to Wilson's speech, before leaving with an injured Carter. He then goes to Yori's apartment and tells him that he, as the Winter Soldier, killed his son. He delivers his completed notebook to his therapist's office and sees Leah again, before leaving for Louisiana. There he joins Wilson, Sarah, her sons, and the community for a cookout and opts to remain there with Wilson.
Personality[]
Bucky Barnes was extremely loyal, devoted, trustworthy, headstrong and patriotic, so he had a strong moral center. He was a good and close friend to Steve Rogers during their youth; he helped him when he got into fights and tried to cheer him up and look after him when Rogers' mother died. Best friends since childhood, they went through many trials and tribulations together. He was also protective of Rogers, as when he planned to enlist in the United States Army. Barnes tried to talk him out of it, as he knew he would die because of his physical condition and poor health. He also serves as Roger's moral compass; outright admitting that he felt that his freedom wasn't worth Steve ruining his friendship's and even giving up his own.
Due to his advanced physiology, however, Barnes survived his apparent death, but was found by HYDRA instead. Trained as a living weapon, Barnes became a new man so to speak as his memories and identity were constantly being wiped until he was augmented into the perfect assassin, the Winter Soldier. As the Solider, he was brutal and ruthless with an utter lack of conscience, and followed remorselessly on HYDRA's any order. Even so, he still saved Steve Rogers from drowning after the Insight Helicarrier blew up. Although he states he did not know why he did such, it was due to Rogers reminding him of who he was, which he initially reacted with violence before finally accepting.
While he still holds a mostly serious demeanor, he is still shown to retain a sense of humor, as shown when he and Falcon both smiled with approval at Rogers' kiss with Sharon Carter and later as the two reminisced over earlier times in their friendship. His sense of humor can also be dry at times, as shown when he asked Wilson why he couldn't use his gadget on Spider-Man earlier to take him down.
Even though Barnes has regained his identity and former values, he has also developed a guilt-ridden conscience, and became deeply ashamed over his actions as the Winter Soldier. He previously stated that he has an absolute memory of every person he has killed, and knows that the fact he was brainwashed does not change the fact that he killed them. Fearing for his mental state and anyone around him (as Helmut Zemo was able to manipulate him with the Winter Soldier Program), Barnes ultimately decided that placing himself in cryogenic stasis until he can be cured of HYDRA's mental programming completely would be the best course of action. To this day, he still regrets killing Tony's parents despite it being HYDRA's fault; showing distress over not making amends with him during his funeral.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Super-Soldier Serum: As a super-soldier, he has all the physical abilities of Captain America, ranging from increased strength, speed, reflexes, stamina, durability, healing, senses, mental faculties and longevity.
- Master Combatant: He is a highly skilled martial artist, being one of the best in the world. He is also a professional espionage operative, stealth tactician and sharpshooter. His skill is so great that even the likes of the Black Widow cannot beat him. Although, that is likely because he is much stronger than her.
Arsenal[]
- Cybernetic Arm: The Winter Soldier's left arm is cybernetic, allowing him higher levels of superhuman strength. This lets him match Spider-Man's power or at least let him hold his own.
