Sebastian Stan gave up his Winter Soldier mantle and took the title of White Wolf while in Wakanda in the MCU. In The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes reveals his new title to Sam Wilson, who is surprised by the new moniker. Stan will probably fully embrace this character in the upcoming film, Thunderbolts. However, it is notable that Bucky Barnes was never the White Wolf in Marvel Comics.
Hunter the White Wolf first appeared in the Black Panther comics edition, Black Panther Vol. 3 #4. The character has strong ties to Wakanda, where he was brought up as a white foreigner in a Black African nation. He later becomes the leader of the Wakandan police force, Hatut Zeraze.
Sebastian Stan’s White Wolf Character Has A Different Backstory In Marvel Comics
Chadwick Boseman‘s T’Challa first addressed Sebastian Stan‘s Bucky Barnes as White Wolf in Avengers: Infinity War. When Sam Wilson teases Barnes about becoming a White Panther after spending time in Wakanda, Barnes reveals that his actual moniker is “White Wolf”. Fans of the comics were not entirely sure about this MCU plotline as White Wolf was one of the best Black Panther villains in the comics and had no connection to Bucky Barnes.
Hunter the White Wolf was raised in Wakanda after a plane crashed north of the Wakandan border, killing his parents and leaving him as the sole survivor. King T’Chaka found the baby and adopted him as a son. The white foreigner in the uncolonized Wakanda was always viewed with suspicion. However, the character grew a liking to the country and became a loyal patriot of Wakanda.
Hunter had aspirations for the throne, however, the birth of T’Challa ruined his plans. He decided to become Wakanda’s best warrior to beat T’Challa to the throne and developed a jealousy towards him. T’Chaka understood Hunter’s throne aspirations and appointed him as the leader of Hatut Zaraze, while T’Challa assumed the mantle of Black Panther eventually. T’Challa became aware of Hatut Zaraze’s brutal policing and fired every single member.
The White Wolf was banished from Wakanda and he took his entire team with him to become mercenaries overseas. The loyal patriot joined forces with Black Panther several times for the greater cause of protecting Wakanda. However, his throne aspirations reached a point of no return when he invaded Wakanda, at a time when T’Challa abdicated his throne to serve the people of Hell’s Kitchen.
The brutal White Wolf killed several innocent Wakandan people to draw out T’Challa, who was stripped of his Black Panther mantle. However, the White Wolf was defeated by T’Challa and faced punishment for his crimes against the country.
Why Does MCU Want Sebastian Stan’s Reformed Villain To Become The White Wolf?
While the MCU didn’t introduce Hunter the White Wolf as a villain to Black Panther, they used a similar plot to weave out Killmonger’s story. Michael B. Jordan‘s Killmonger becomes the villain who is jealous of T’Challa, yet very loyal to his country. While fans speculated some similarity between the storylines of Marvel Comics’ White Wolf and the MCU’s White Wolf (Bucky Barnes), the franchise appears to be taking the character in a different direction.
The only connections between the two characters are both of them being mercenaries and their connection to Wakanda, who gives shelter to both of them. At this point, fans believe that the MCU only plans to use the stylish moniker and not any of the character traits or storyline of the Black Panther villain. Fans also believe that the franchise will eventually adopt the White Wolf costume for Sebastian Stan. One Instagram user @soloauthority created a concept art of the same.
For the White Wolf references in the MCU, fans can watch Avengers: Infinity War and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, now streaming on Disney+.
