The Marvel Cinematic Universe's Multiverse Saga is well underway but the next immediate chapters of it will be focused on the franchise's more grounded storylines. Over the course of the past three years, there have been ambitious multiverse-altering events going down in the likes of Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Loki, and even this year's Deadpool and Wolverine, but we're returning to the straightforward world of the MCU for some of the upcoming titles.
Among those upcoming titles are Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*, both which will feature beloved veterans of the MCU franchise. The former stars Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson, the Falcon who has now taken up the mantle of Captain America in a bid to carry on the legacy of his friend Steve Rogers. The latter features a lot of familiar faces from the previous movies, including Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, US Agent, and Ghost.
However, it sounds like one of those movies is getting a bit of a rework to include one of those veteran characters from the other.
Bucky Barnes rumored to cameo in Captain America 4
According to Marvel scooper accounts Marvel Updates and Exiled Scooper, Captain America: Brave New World has undergone reshoots to edit a number of scenes in the movie, including adding a cameo from none other than Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes. Reshoots for the movie have reportedly been taking place in recent weeks to put the finishing touches on the film before its release this coming February.
While Marvel has yet to confirm the Bucky cameo, it would make sense from multiple perspectives. Bucky made his MCU debut in 2011's Captain America The First Avenger and has appeared in its two sequels (2014's The Winter Soldier and 2016's Civil War), so if he weren't to appear in this one, it would mark the first in the franchise without him. Given his close ties to the Captain America mantle (and his friendship with Steve Rogers), it wouldn't feel right to have him absent from the fourth installment.
But a cameo appearance could serve more of a purpose in Brave New World than that. Remember, when we last saw the character, he co-starred in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier alongside Sam Wilson as he struggled with the possibility of taking over the Captain America mantle. Being that both of them are the best friends of Steve Rogers from two different eras, they always felt like a natural double act - and the Disney Plus series highlighted that. Though they weren't initially friends, they overcame their differences and defeated the Flag-Smashers together, strengthening their working relationship and perhaps even becoming friends in the process.
It would be pretty fitting if Sam and Bucky shared a scene together since the former had finally allowed himself to become the hero they both knew he was destined to become. Not only would it strengthen their unlikely friendship, it would feel like a full-circle moment for the franchise. Bucky knows what it takes to be Captain America since he knew Steve better than anybody and he already knows that Sam is a worthy successor - we saw that in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier - but for anyone who maybe hasn't seen the Disney Plus series, seeing the two share a moment in Brave New World would be the full-circle moment that it needs to be in the Captain America franchise.
It's also worth noting that Captain America: Brave New World isn't the only sequel we're getting to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. While that carries on Sam's story, the arcs of Bucky and John Walker will carry on through Thunderbolts*. Based on the Marvel Comics team of the same name, it will see Bucky, Walker, Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster, and Sentry seemingly team up to take on Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, who also returns after seemingly recruiting Walker in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
Given that Thunderbolts* comes out just three months after Captain America: Brave New World, it wouldn't be too surprising if Bucky makes an appearance in a post-credits scene in the latter. Nobody knows how to set up a future movie quite like Marvel Studios, and post-credits scenes were once used by them to tease the very next installment. These days, they tend to set up future installments further down the line, but in this case, it would be believable if Captain America 4 was used to lay the groundwork for Thunderbolts* - especially as both are essentially sequels to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
Captain America: Brave New World arrives in movie theaters on February 14, 2025. Thunderbolts* comes out three months later, on May 2 2025.