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James Buchanan Barnes breaks down his most iconic characters, including his roles in 'Secret life of a Teenage Super Spy,' 'How To Get A Prom Date In 10 Days,' 'End Of The Line', HYDRA: The First Winter Soldier,' 'Wet, Wild Winter' and ‘Summer in Paris, 1981.'
“So I was freaking out over the fact that I’d be compared to the great Steve Rogers, thinking that if by some miracle I get to meet him someday, he’d be disappointed in my poor rendition of him, even though it wasn’t really him I was playing.” James throws his head back into a laugh, then a playful shrug of his shoulders and a raised eyebrow, “Well, we all know how that went down.”
ICONIC CHARACTERS WITH JAMES BUCHANAN BARNES
Secret life of a Teenage Super Spy
Jim
James- who tells us with a wave of the hand to call him Bucky, smiles fondly.
Bucky: So Jim Brilliant. He’s- as the series name suggests, a teenage super spy, fights evil during the night, struggles with algebra during the day, he’s a little goofy- fun, a bit of a disaster.
He laughs.
Bucky: I was 15 at the time and I’d done some modelling work with my mother’s company, nothing too serious, but of course- my brilliant sister Becca had already been in a couple of movies by then. She calls me from LA one day and tells me about the series, says the producer saw some of my photos and likes my look, I was flown out of New York the next day for an audition and started filming like, two weeks after that.
(Footage from the series: “Jim Brilliant” locks himself into a school bathroom stall, almost tripping over himself to pull out his costume from his school bag.)
Bucky: It was good fun, as with these series that you work on for a long time- the character grows and changes with you and it’s always interesting to be working with the writers to decide what’s in store for Jim next. I think the biggest change was Jim’s relationship with Jake Jenkins- who was played the amazing Helmut Zemo. At the beginning we were supposed to be arch-enemies, but we had so much fun filming our scenes that they just gave up and wrote this whole redemption arc for Jake that had us turn into partners instead.
(Footage from the series: Jim is shoved into his locker by school jock Jake Jenkins, who sneers at him comically. The scene cuts into another and this time, Jake is now at Jim’s side, and they’re sneaking into a dark corridor, whispering and hissing at each other on which way to go)
Bucky: So we’d filmed a whole season every summer during vacations so most of us didn’t have to miss too much of school, the whole cast and crew were all so young it was just so fun going into filming, almost like summer camp, and my co-stars from the series are still some of my best friends now, we have this whole group chat and it’s hilarious.
(Footage from the series: “Jim Brilliant” rushes back home from his last adventure, uniform singed and glasses cracked and skewed on his face, “Urgh, mom’s gonna kill me!” he murmurs, jumping into his room from the roof and barely managing to stumble himself into his chair, pulling out his homework onto the desk as there’s a knock on his door, “Coming!” He calls as casually as possible. “Just finishing up my homework!”)
Bucky: I think initially the writers planned for Jim to be much sleeker, more level headed, like a teenage James Bond you know? But then after half a season, they realized that direction wasn’t going to work with me, so gradually we turned Jim into this panicked, disaster of a teenager when he isn’t saving the world, and somehow people started finding that relatable.
His chuckle melts into an abashed smile.
Bucky: People always assume that I’d be ashamed of the series, but it’s actually the opposite. I’m always honoured to have fans that are adults come up to me saying that they grew up watching me, and even now when I see people using my character as memes, it’s a thrill to see that the character is still relatable to teens nowadays.
How To Get A Prom Date In 30 Days
Carter
Bucky: I think I was like 17? 18? I was a few seasons into Teenage Superspy and a producer I worked with at Disney called me up and told me he wanted me to play Carter Blaze- this perfect guy. Football team captain, the school heart-throb, that the main character- Natalie is in love with. He sent me the script, and I thought it was fun and cute, so I took it.
(Footage from the movie: Natalie, the main character is maimed by a football, then suddenly someone’s pulling her up with an apology, it’s Carter- the football captain. He pulls off his football helmet, and time becomes slow motion as a dreamy, blur filter takes over the screen, Carters lips curl into a smile, his grey- blue eyes crinkling, his floppy hair falls over his forehead and he pushes it back. “You alright?”)
Bucky: There was this hilarious scene where we trick the audience into thinking Carter was beating himself off, then we reveal that he was doing this comical, ridiculous sports massage. So I had to lie there, like five cameras in my face, sweaty and moaning and trying to look blissed out.
(Footage from the movie: A close up of Carter lying down eyes closed, mouth slack. He threw his head back to let out a moan, “Oh yeah, that feels good.” )
Bucky closes his eyes with a groan and a chuckle.
Bucky: At that time it was the weirdest thing I’d done on camera, but yeah, good times. Ironically, I had to miss out on my own prom because I was filming.
End Of The Line
Stephen Johnson
Bucky: After wrapping up Teenage Spy after three years, I pretty much disappeared- as most Disney child stars do. I think after working on a character like that for so long, it’s always hard to transit into more mature roles. I thought I’d played enough teenagers in coming-of-age films already, so I decided to take a break on taking roles, then I got accepted into the theatre program at Brown. *Shrugs with an obviously pleased smile* So I was focusing on that, doing a few small theatre productions here and there during my first year, then one day I got a call telling me that Yori Nakajima was casting for this war film, and that he wanted fresh, young faces. I said to myself: you can’t miss an opportunity with one of the greatest directors of our time, ya just can’t. So I went for it- and it was a huge audition! There were like a hundred people fighting for one role, I was so sure I’d never get a leg in, but somehow I got it.
He shakes his head, eyes wide as if still unbelieving that it had happened.
Bucky: It was bizarre, I mean I still can’t believe I’d been a part of a production like that. The film was this artistic, besutofulband creative retelling of WWII. It was about this group of kick-ass super soldiers put together during the war, with the best soldier from every country of the Allies, and I was the American one. Zemo was also part of it, it was great to see a familiar face and It was very humbling walking on-set and seeing all these talented people I was lucky enough to call my co-stars.
(Footage from the movie: In a dark, smokey room, a door is kicked down to reveal a group of young men emerging from the shadows, all fit, handsome and carrying various weapons. Bucky Barnes as Stephen Johnson is one of them, his face stern and serious as he stalks into the room, carrying a machine gun, a sound is heard, his jaw tightens and he raises his weapon to fire. His face is obviously thinner and more structured from the previous two movies shown.)
Bucky: We were all put on this strict workout and diet program, I had to dye my hair blonde, it was amazing. Half way through production, I was having a chat with Yori one day and he tells me that my character is loosely based on Captain America. I was freaking out over the fact that I’d be compared to the great Steve Rogers, thinking that if by some miracle I get to meet him someday, he’d be disappointed in my poor rendition of him, even though it wasn’t really him I was playing.
Bucky throws his head back into a laugh, then a playful shrug of his shoulders, he raises his left hand to show off a silver band around his ring finger.
Bucky: Well, we all know how that went down.
HYDRA: The First Winter Soldier
White Panther
Bucky: The White Panther- till this day, is probably the most physically challenging role I’ve ever done. He’s this brainwashed, cyborg assassin with a metal arm and long hair and eyeliner. He’s the villain- the first product from the Winter Soldier program, and you hate him until you know his backstory and then you feel sorry for him.
(Footage from the film: A thin, sinister looking man in a lab coat whispers some words into the soldier’s ear and his eyes snap open, dead and emotionless. “Я готов отвечить.”)
Bucky: There’s this amazingly choreographed fight scene, and we had stunt-doubles but we also had to learn it for ourselves, and we’d rehearsed for months. There were all these elaborate knife flips that I had to do while being in my metal arm- which was actually this two piece sleeve that I had to get into with the help of KY jelly. It was disgusting at the time, but great when I look back at it.
(Footage from the film: The White Panther blocks a punch to the gut, flipping his knife in attempt to drive it into his enemy’s- a blonde man with goggles, head. It’s blocked and the two men grapple for the upper hand, suddenly- the blonde man erupts into flames, and the White Panther rolls out of the way into defence stance, the white mask falling from his face.)
Bucky: The most memorable scene for me was this scene we’d filmed in a tunnel, after the big fight and my mask comes off. That’s when the Human Torch- Johnny’s character, recognizes that this guy he’s been fighting with is actually his long lost best friend, and I don’t remember him but deep down there’s a part of me that does, the hardest part was all these emotional changes I had to portray with my eyes, because he doesn’t talk for the whole scene.
(Footage from the film: The flames die down and the blonde man- the Human Torch looks as if he’s seen a ghost, he gasps, “Hunter?” For a moment, the White Panther looks shocked, then conflicted, before steeling himself and drawing out a gun to take aim.)
Bucky: Being a science fiction film, we needed a lot of gadgets and tech, and we had the honour of bringing in some experts from Stark Industries. One day Tony Stark came in himself and I was so starstruck to be in the presence of Iron Man I was a mess! *He covers his face in embarrassment*
But he turned out to be surprisingly easy-going and friendly, very essentric, you know- for a real life superhero, and we stayed in contact after the film. As most of the internet will know by now- a few years down the line, he invites me to this huge party at his tower and that’s where I met my lovely husband Steve.
Wet, Wild, Winter
Lance
Bucky: Me and my roommate at Brown- Eli, we were drunk one night and had this ridiculous idea of a parody road trip, buddy-cop movie about these young agents who go undercover to this Northern European town as students, with stupid fake accents and everything. He actually started writing it after we sobered up and he finished it in like two days. Crazily, it got greenlit by a studio and that was my first time doing some directing.
(Footage from the film: Lance and his partner Ash- played by Eli Bradley look confused as they stare at their captain, Lance scoffs, “High School? In Europe? They have schools in Europe?”)
Bucky: I think at that point people forgot how young I really was, and the sheer stupidity of the movie reminded them that I was just this crazy dumb college kid that loves his toilet humour and pop-culture references. Also a lot of nudity, I mean I still had the abs from working on White Panther so… *he raises his eyebrows suggestively*
the internet didn't seem to mind too much.
(Footage from the film: A crowd of teenagers cheering as Lance strips down to his boxers and jumps into an half frozen lake with a “Arghhhhh”, Ash looking from side to side and slowly stepping back and blending into the cheering crowd as he starts clapping on his own.)
Bucky: The film didn’t get a theatrical release and we were fine with that really, it was more like a passion project, we were thrilled to even have it released at all. But then like two years later, someone on Tumblr got their hands on it and suddenly it became this big meme, and that one line I had about America’s ass aged really well. Best part of it? It was improv! I saw the poster there and just had to go for it.
(Footage of the film: Ash scoffs at his friend, “Dude, your first wet dream is Captain America? That’s madness.” Lance throws up his arms in protest while gesturing at an old poster, a printed painting of Captain America with his back turned, showing the shield hanging off his back: “That ass is America’s ass! America! I’m just patriotic!”)
He gives the camera a little smirk.
Bucky: Yea I was so embarrassed to know that Steve watched that movie, probably not as embarrassed as he was when he did, but Tumblr? *Eyes wide, shaking his head with a shrug* Love it apparently, and it’s become a bit of a gag, Tony gave me a t-shirt with a screencap of that scene for my birthday last year.
Summer in Paris, 1981
Sébastien
Bucky: I don’t think I ever needed to come out publicly, I mean I never really hid it, I think people just figured it out on like my fifth drunken thirst tweet. *He laughs sheepishly* It’s kind of incredible that I didn’t really play a queer role until Sébastien.
(Footage of the film: Two boys break out of the surface on the ocean together, and they lean their foreheads on each other, breathing as water drops roll down their faces. The brunette of the pair- Sébastien, lets out a sigh and whispers “I’ll miss you. I’ll miss you forever.)
Bucky: He is this shy, introverted kid with a french mother and a british father who are both musicians, so naturally I had to be fluent in french on top of adopting a british accent. Luckily, I played the piano as a kid, so that was like, one out of three. I flew into Paris two months before filming began to brush up on my french, and it was an amazing place, I miss it a lot.
(Sébastien is playing the piano, he looks up to see Christian swinging a girl around on the dance floor, for a moment he looks mesmerised, then as Christian turns the girl around so her back is facing him, he and gives Sébastien an eye roll and sticks out his tongue in mock-disgust, Sébastien breaks into an amused smile. )
Bucky: So the whole film is about these two boys- Christian and Sébastien, who meet in Paris and have this summer fling, then after the summer ends they part and lose contact, and it documents their life after that. I spend like 50% of the film being miserable, unable to come to terms with my sexuality. I think I’ve been incredibly lucky in real life to be born into a generation that had me always surrounded by the most supportive, open-minded people, so at first I couldn’t really relate to the internal struggles the character was going through.
(Footage of the film: Sébastien stares out the window where Christian is standing at the driveway, talking and giggling with a girl, he swallows and draws the curtains sharply. The next scene, he's lying alone in his bed half naked, moonlight washing over his pale skin as he writhes, hand down his boxers and whispering Christian's name)
Bucky: Fortunately, I had already began seeing Steve at that time, he really gave me some insight from his perspective, the inner turmoil and conflict of being queer in times that you weren’t allowed to be. The other 50% of the film I spend being miserable and pining over long-lost love, and by then I hadn’t gotten to see Steve for like 3 months, so it wasn’t that hard playing to project that kind of emotion.
(Footage of the film: Christian's train disappears and Sébastien stares after it for a moment, then his hand is wiping away at eyes in a frenzy, his eyes red and glazed over.)
Bucky: Honestly I expected nothing when the movie was released, I knew it was an amazing script with a phenomenal director and crew, but the reaction blew me out of the water. I remember taking Steve to the premiere and he had to sneak out early to avoid the press because he was in tears. I had young kids come up to me on the street telling me the movie changed their life.
Bucky swallows, and pauses, his eyes on the ground as he shifts in his seat, he looks up and lets out a content sigh. Breaking into his beautiful iconic smile that have captured the hearts of millions of boys and girls alike.
Bucky: I think that’s the best part of being an actor, I get to be part of these cultural movements that change people’s lives and having Steve- who’s an honest-to-god superhero that’s actually saving the world on a daily basis, tell me how impactful the film was for him, I’m really thankful that I get to do this and be able to call myself an actor. I mean, also, the work keeps me busy while my husband is away on missions so I don’t spiral into anxiety and lose my mind while he’s off fighting monsters and aliens. That’s plus as well!
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