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He may not have been a central figure in the franchise, but Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes has been part of the MCU as long as almost anyone else at this point. He first showed up back in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger and has played the hero, villain, and everything in between, so it makes sense he’d be a bit defensive at the criticism the Marvel franchise has gotten the past couple of years.

“It’s become really convenient to pick on [Marvel films],” Sebastian Stan said in a recent interview promoting his upcoming Donald Trump bio-pic, The Apprentice. “And that’s fine. Everyone’s got an opinion. But they’re a big part of what contributes to this business and allows 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.”

Despite the recent course correction that Marvel has had to take with the MCU, Stan still sees it as an important part of what makes Hollywood work. “Sometimes I get protective of it because the intention is really f*cking good. It’s just f*cking hard to make a good movie over and over again.”

Sebastian Stan doesn’t shy away from saying that the MCU has had some missteps in recent years. Moreso, he implies that the fact it took so long for the franchise to falter is something remarkable. And he probably has a point that the existence of such a consistent box office draw will be a benefit to the film industry overall. After more than a decade of playing Bucky Barnes in Marvel movies, with 2025's Thunderbolts* as his next outing, we can certainly understand why he feels partial to the MCU.

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters