What to expect from Marvel's next big bet, 'Thunderbolts*'
Marvel Studios recently unveiled the lineup of its next cinematic venture, Thunderbolts*, at Disney's D23 Brazil event. Following Captain America: Brave New World, the film introduces a unique team of characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The team includes Yelena Belova/Black Widow (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), John Walker/US Agent (Wyatt Russell), Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Bob Reynolds/Sentry (Lewis Pullman).
'Thunderbolts*' team: A blend of anti-heroes and reformed villains
The Thunderbolts team is a one-of-a-kind mix of assassins, anti-heroes, and reformed supervillains. In the teaser, CIA Director Val (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) tells the team, "There are good guys, and you're bad guys. But there are worse guys." The character Yelena further adds to their complexity by saying, "Everyone here has done bad things: shadow ops, robbing government labs, contract kills. So someone wants us gone."
'Thunderbolts*' origins and evolution in Marvel Comics
In Marvel Comics, the Thunderbolts were originally formed by Baron Helmut Zemo as a new incarnation of the Masters of Evil in the absence of the Avengers. Initially, a team of supervillains posing as superheroes, they eventually embraced heroism and sought redemption. Over the years, the team's roster has included heroes and villains alike, with Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, and Luke Cage leading more heroic versions of the Thunderbolts.
'Thunderbolts*' characters: A closer look at their backgrounds
The Thunderbolts team is made up of characters from different backgrounds. Belova, a former Red Room assassin, was trained with her adoptive sister Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). Barnes fought alongside Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), the first Captain America, in World War II before being captured by HYDRA and turned into the Winter Soldier. Shostakov was the Soviet Union's first and only super soldier, while Walker was a decorated US Army Ranger before becoming the new Captain America.
'Thunderbolts*' production details and release date
Thunderbolts* is produced by Kevin Feige, with Jake Schreier directing from a script by Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo, and Lee Sung Jin. The official synopsis describes the film as "an irreverent team-up featuring depressed assassin Yelena Belova (Pugh) alongside the MCU's least anticipated band of misfits." The movie will hit theaters on May 2, 2025, as part of Phase Five of the MCU.
