diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/BulkItemRequest.java b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/BulkItemRequest.java
index 0f4835de2e9ea..81d5e874440df 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/BulkItemRequest.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/BulkItemRequest.java
@@ -19,11 +19,10 @@
 
 package org.elasticsearch.action.bulk;
 
+import org.elasticsearch.Version;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.DocWriteRequest;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.DocWriteResponse;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.IndicesRequest;
-import org.elasticsearch.action.delete.DeleteRequest;
-import org.elasticsearch.action.index.IndexRequest;
-import org.elasticsearch.action.update.UpdateRequest;
 import org.elasticsearch.common.io.stream.StreamInput;
 import org.elasticsearch.common.io.stream.StreamOutput;
 import org.elasticsearch.common.io.stream.Streamable;
@@ -38,7 +37,6 @@ public class BulkItemRequest implements Streamable {
     private int id;
     private DocWriteRequest request;
     private volatile BulkItemResponse primaryResponse;
-    private volatile boolean ignoreOnReplica;
 
     BulkItemRequest() {
 
@@ -71,15 +69,9 @@ void setPrimaryResponse(BulkItemResponse primaryResponse) {
         this.primaryResponse = primaryResponse;
     }
 
-    /**
-     * Marks this request to be ignored and *not* execute on a replica.
-     */
-    void setIgnoreOnReplica() {
-        this.ignoreOnReplica = true;
-    }
-
     boolean isIgnoreOnReplica() {
-        return ignoreOnReplica;
+        return primaryResponse != null &&
+            (primaryResponse.isFailed() || primaryResponse.getResponse().getResult() == DocWriteResponse.Result.NOOP);
     }
 
     public static BulkItemRequest readBulkItem(StreamInput in) throws IOException {
@@ -94,8 +86,18 @@ public void readFrom(StreamInput in) throws IOException {
         request = DocWriteRequest.readDocumentRequest(in);
         if (in.readBoolean()) {
             primaryResponse = BulkItemResponse.readBulkItem(in);
+            // This is a bwc layer for 6.0 which no longer mutates the requests with these
+            // Since 5.x still requires it we do it here. Note that these are harmless
+            // as both operations are idempotent. This is something we rely on and assert on
+            // in InternalEngine.planIndexingAsNonPrimary()
+            request.version(primaryResponse.getVersion());
+            request.versionType(request.versionType().versionTypeForReplicationAndRecovery());
+        }
+        if (in.getVersion().before(Version.V_5_6_0_UNRELEASED)) {
+            boolean ignoreOnReplica = in.readBoolean();
+            assert ignoreOnReplica == isIgnoreOnReplica() :
+                "ignoreOnReplica mismatch. wire [" + ignoreOnReplica + "], ours [" + isIgnoreOnReplica() + "]";
         }
-        ignoreOnReplica = in.readBoolean();
     }
 
     @Override
@@ -103,6 +105,8 @@ public void writeTo(StreamOutput out) throws IOException {
         out.writeVInt(id);
         DocWriteRequest.writeDocumentRequest(out, request);
         out.writeOptionalStreamable(primaryResponse);
-        out.writeBoolean(ignoreOnReplica);
+        if (out.getVersion().before(Version.V_5_6_0_UNRELEASED)) {
+            out.writeBoolean(isIgnoreOnReplica());
+        }
     }
 }
diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/TransportShardBulkAction.java b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/TransportShardBulkAction.java
index b4a188578b3b7..95c3d4b69301e 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/TransportShardBulkAction.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/bulk/TransportShardBulkAction.java
@@ -29,8 +29,8 @@
 import org.elasticsearch.action.index.IndexRequest;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.index.IndexResponse;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.ActionFilters;
-import org.elasticsearch.action.support.replication.ReplicationOperation;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.TransportActions;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.support.replication.ReplicationOperation;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.replication.ReplicationResponse.ShardInfo;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.replication.TransportWriteAction;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.update.UpdateHelper;
@@ -186,8 +186,8 @@ private Translog.Location executeBulkItemRequest(IndexMetaData metaData, IndexSh
             if (operationResult == null) { // in case of noop update operation
                 assert response.getResult() == DocWriteResponse.Result.NOOP
                         : "only noop update can have null operation";
-                replicaRequest.setIgnoreOnReplica();
                 replicaRequest.setPrimaryResponse(new BulkItemResponse(replicaRequest.id(), opType, response));
+                assert replicaRequest.isIgnoreOnReplica();
             } else if (operationResult.hasFailure() == false) {
                 location = locationToSync(location, operationResult.getTranslogLocation());
                 BulkItemResponse primaryResponse = new BulkItemResponse(replicaRequest.id(), opType, response);
@@ -195,6 +195,7 @@ private Translog.Location executeBulkItemRequest(IndexMetaData metaData, IndexSh
                 // set an empty ShardInfo to indicate no shards participated in the request execution
                 // so we can safely send it to the replicas. We won't use it in the real response though.
                 primaryResponse.getResponse().setShardInfo(new ShardInfo());
+                assert replicaRequest.isIgnoreOnReplica() == false;
             } else {
                 DocWriteRequest docWriteRequest = replicaRequest.request();
                 Exception failure = operationResult.getFailure();
@@ -209,9 +210,9 @@ private Translog.Location executeBulkItemRequest(IndexMetaData metaData, IndexSh
                 // again, due to primary relocation and only processing up to N bulk items when the shard gets closed)
                 // then just use the response we got from the successful execution
                 if (replicaRequest.getPrimaryResponse() == null || isConflictException(failure) == false) {
-                    replicaRequest.setIgnoreOnReplica();
                     replicaRequest.setPrimaryResponse(new BulkItemResponse(replicaRequest.id(), docWriteRequest.opType(),
                             new BulkItemResponse.Failure(request.index(), docWriteRequest.type(), docWriteRequest.id(), failure)));
+                    assert replicaRequest.isIgnoreOnReplica();
                 }
             }
             assert replicaRequest.getPrimaryResponse() != null;