Damn. I haven’t listened to the interview yet, but this reads as not only open to, but inviting of a romantic interpretation. Anybody else I’ve seen this kind of statement from would hint or steer the listener towards the “brotherly” kind of love, but Sebastian went no holds barred. He even said at the beginning there that any interpretation that feels right, is right. I love that.
“I’m just happy that the relationship is embraced. And it should be embraced in whatever way fashion, in any way people desire and want it to be. That’s what I love about movies and tv shows, and the theatre, this form of expression. Someone can see the same movie as you and have an entirely different experience. Find something within themselves that’s true, honest and relatable. My goal has always been to, with this role, with that relationship, with anything I’ve approached, to just try and be as honest as I possibly can. And the rest isn’t up to me. I don’t strive to put some mark on that. Because it isn’t my mark. I’m just the actor. I’m not the writer and I’m certainly not the creator, I’m sort of the messenger. So if there are intentions or not, I would be asking the writers. But I always approached that relationship as very close and one of family, that was my take on it. Those characters are very interlinked because they are the only thing they have to remind them of a past that no longer exist. My approach to those scenes was to find the truth to it. And the truth was that these guys are actually experiencing something extremely traumatic, if you’re actually looking at the truth of their experience. And you’re taking away all the glitter and glamour of a superhero, superpower, whatever it’s called. You’re talking about two people entirely ripped from the world, thrown to another, and are just doing their best to make the right decision. And all they have is each other. To look to each other. And that journey is what it is. Is it love? For sure it’s love. However you wanna define that love is up to you.”
— On the reaction to Bucky and Sam’s relationship | Sebastian Stan for Just for Variety with Marc Malkin
Before becoming an actor, you wanted to be a mechanical engineer, can you tell us what got you interested in engineering?
My brothers were very important to me growing up. They literally were my superheroes! One of my brothers was in law school and the other was in engineering school. I knew I wasn’t smart enough to be a lawyer so engineer was the next pick…I honestly thought engineering was all about building things and blowing things up! How could you not be excited about that?
Anthony Mackie for L’Officiel Australia (May 2021)