‘The Batman Part II’ Keeps Poaching MCU Alums

The year 2026 just started, but we’re already thinking ahead to 2027—October 1, 2027, to be specific, the date the very long-awaited The Batman Part II is slated to hit theaters. Not a month after Scarlett Johansson signed onto Matt Reeves’ sequel opposite Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader, another Avengers alum, Sebastian Stan, has also reportedly joined the project.

We don’t know who Johansson is playing, and the same goes for Stan: Deadline, which broke the news, reports Stan’s potential role is unknown at this time. (The InSneider’s Jeff Sneider suggests that it could be Harvey Dent, aka Two-Face, a villain that’s frequently popped up in previous Batman movies—but that’s merely speculation at this point.)

Stan, like Johansson, is no stranger to the superhero movie realm thanks to a long stint in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He first played Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger and reprised the role in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War, 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, and last year’s Thunderbolts. Plus, he was the co-lead in the 2021 Disney+ limited series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Bucky also had a couple of key cameos along the way (Ant-Man, Black Panther) and is slated to appear in this December’s Avengers: Doomsday.

However, Stan isn’t just a blockbuster guy; he’s had a wildly diverse career, including key roles in I, Tonya, The Martian, and Fresh. He also played Tommy Lee in Hulu’s Pam & Tommy biographical series. Most recently, he notched critical acclaim for 2024’s A Different Man and The Apprentice, the latter scoring him his first-ever Oscar nomination for his portrayal of a young Donald Trump.

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