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Thunderbolts*

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"Spoiler alert."
WARNING! This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for Thunderbolts*. Keep reading this article at your own risk.
After 30 days from the release of Thunderbolts*, this notice may be removed.
"Your name is Thunderbolts*, isn't it?"
A rename to "The New Avengers" has been proposed for this article in order to make it comply with the Naming Policy.
Please see the relevant discussion for the name on the talk page.

"For years, I have been working secretly to develop a new age of protection. Today, the citizens of the United States needed that protection, and thanks to my hard work, they got it. Ladies and gentlemen... meet the New Avengers."
―Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Thunderbolts*, later advertised as The New Avengers, is a 2025 superhero film, based on the Marvel Comics team of the same name. The film is a sequel to Ant-Man and the Wasp, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Black Widow, and Hawkeye. It is the thirty-sixth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the fourteenth installment of Phase Five. The film was released on May 2, 2025.

The film is directed by Jake Schreier and stars Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, Wyatt Russell as John Walker/U.S. Agent, Olga Kurylenko as Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster, Lewis Pullman as Bob Reynolds/Sentry/Void, Geraldine Viswanathan as Mel Gold, with David Harbour as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian, with Hannah John-Kamen as Ava Starr/Ghost, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.

Synopsis[]

Marvel Studios assembles an unconventional team of antiheroes—Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster and John Walker. After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap set by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, these disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts. Will this dysfunctional group tear themselves apart, or find redemption and unite as something much more before it’s too late?[1]

Plot[]

Yelena Belova and her Captive

Yelena Belova infiltrates the O.X.E. Kuala Lumpur Research Facility

Feeling lost and depressed without her sister, Yelena Belova continues her work as O.X.E. chairwoman Valentina Allegra de Fontaine's personal enforcer. She successfully infiltrates an O.X.E. research facility in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and eliminates all traces connecting de Fontaine to the company's illicit "Sentry" project, requesting her next assignment. Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress and newly-appointed Congressman Bucky Barnes move to impeach de Fontaine from her position in the CIA. She denies any involvement in O.X.E.'s efforts at artificially creating superhumans and insists her only goal is to safeguard a world bereft of the Avengers, while ordering her subordinates to remove any remaining evidence.

Thunderbolts* Trailer 4

Alexei Shostakov is met by Yelena Belova

In Washington, D.C., Belova visits Alexei Shostakov, now running a limo business, although he would rather work for de Fontaine like her. Contemplating if she should stop working for de Fontaine, Belova asks Shostakov wherein the point lies. Answering to Belova's query whether he feels fulfilled, Shostakov admits his happiest days were serving as the Red Guardian and advises Belova to follow in Natasha's footsteps. Before leaving, Belova gazes at an old photo of herself smiling with her West Chesapeake Valley Thunderbolts soccer team. She requests a more public assignment from de Fontaine before accepting her next operation.

Thunderbolts* Trailer 25

Ghost, U.S. Agent, Taskmaster and Yelena Belova fight

Belova breaches the O.X.E. Vault in Utah to stop a rogue operative, revealed to be Ghost, from stealing valuable assets. She is ambushed by U.S. Agent, whose mission is to kill Belova. Taskmaster soon intervenes, having been assigned to take out U.S. Agent. After Ghost kills Taskmaster, a disoriented and amnesiac man named Bob Reynolds fails to escape through sealed doors. Simultaneously, de Fontaine hosts an event in honor of the first responders from the Battle of New York while Barnes tries to establish a contact with her assistant Mel Gold, hoping for her collaboration in de Fontaine's impeachment.

Thunderbolts escape explosion

Yelena Belova, U.S. Agent, Ghost, and Bob Reynolds avoid incineration

Realizing de Fontaine intended to trap them inside the vault and erase all evidence, the operatives narrowly escape her incinerators. After touching Bob' hand during her fall, Belova experiences a vision of her assassination of Anya for the Red Room. In his limo, Shostakov hears of de Fontaine's plans to travel to the vault with a strike team to finish Belova and others off. Growing suspicious of Bob, U.S. Agent confronts him about how he got inside, prompting Belova to diffuse the tension. Bob, struggling with feelings of unworthiness, urges Belova to leave him behind. She confides that she suppresses her own darkness in what he calls a "void." As de Fontaine and Gold identify Bob as Robert Reynolds, Project Sentry's only surviving test subject, the group reaches the surface.

Ava, Bob, Yelena & U.S. Agent

Ghost, Bob Reynolds, Yelena Belova, and U.S. Agent encounter O.X.E.'s strike team

With the strike team outside the vault, Belova's plan unravels. During the ensuing clash with O.X.E., she, U.S. Agent, and Reynolds don disguises and escape in a vehicle obtained by Ghost. When questioned by a soldier, Reynolds leaps from the vehicle with a rifle, causing a diversion. The O.X.E. soldiers open fire at him. De Fontaine fails to stop them in time, but Reynolds survives and soars into the air before slamming into the ground upon passing out, sending the vehicle hurtling off a cliff. The group survives and Belova shares the Project Sentry documents she found within the vault with U.S. Agent and Ghost.

Bucky with the TBolts

Bucky Barnes captures the Thunderbolts

As the group plans to lay low and hide from de Fontaine, they get picked up by Red Guardian's limo, as he rushed there to save Belova. The "Thunderbolts," as U.S. Agent sarcastically called themselves after Belova shared parts of her past with the rest, were pursued by O.X.E. vehicles. Winter Soldier, having tracked Gold's phone after their call, disables the convoy and detains the Thunderbolts to have them testify against de Fontaine. Meanwhile, O.X.E. takes Reynolds to the Watchtower, formerly Avengers Tower, where de Fontaine where she interrogates him. Upon touching his hand, she envisions her father's death. Rattled, she exits and instructs Gold to develop a kill switch and stage a media rollout for Reynolds. Gold voices concern over Reynolds' instability, but de Fontaine sees potential. Winter Soldier, learning from Gold and the Thunderbolts the threat Reynolds poses, recruits them to stop her and save him.

Valentina with the Thunderbolts

Valentina Allegra de Fontaine addresses the Thunderbolts

De Fontaine manipulates Reynolds into becoming the superhero Sentry. The Thunderbolts arrive in New York City and assault the Watchtower, confronting de Fontaine inside. She unveils Sentry to them as "Earth's mightiest hero," planning for him to neutralize the group publicly, painting them as criminals so it would clear her name. The group's attacks are impervious to Sentry, causing the Thunderbolts to retreat. Despite de Fontaine's orders to kill them, Sentry starts to believe in his own superiority and opposes her. Sentry attacks her, but drops to the floor lifeless once Gold presses kill switch. Sentry reawakens as his darker half, Void.

Yelena Belova gets voided

Yelena Belova chooses to face Void

The Thunderbolts break up and depart after a distressed Belova notes her and the team's incompetence. Followed by Red Guardian, Belova vents to him about her regrets and deteriorating mental health. He reminds her of her role on the soccer team: to give others someone to rely on when they make mistakes. Belova finds comfort in his words, and the two are interrupted by the arrival of the Void, who begins to engulf the whole city in shadows. The other Thunderbolts return to rescue civilians from the ensuing carnage, though Belova decides to willingly step into the void.

Thunderbolts Team

Bob Reynolds and his friends confront Void

Inside, Belova confronts her haunting childhood and struggles with alcoholism. The team hesitates to follow until U.S. Agent recalls experiencing a similar illusion in the vault. Within a mental projection of Reynolds' childhood bedroom, Void's "nicest room," Belova speaks with him about his childhood abuse. She encourages him to confront his pain, as she has, before the Thunderbolts arrive to help them stop Void. To escape, Reynolds brings them to the "worst room," a manifestation of the research facility, where Void taunts Reynolds by calling him worthless. Reynolds violently battles his darker self and allows it to consume him, but the Thunderbolts manage to reach him and reassure Reynolds of his worth.

Thunderbolts Walk and Talk

The Thunderbolts approach Valentina Allegra de Fontaine

Reynolds reverses Void's effects on New York upon regaining control, although he does not retain any memories of it happening. The Thunderbolts then approach de Fontaine to take her down once and for all, but suddenly find themselves at a press conference that de Fontaine organized in haste. Scrambling to save herself, she claims that the Thunderbolts were her "secret project" at retaining protection for the United States, publically revealing them as the "New Avengers." Belova reminds her that she lies under their control. While Reynolds is benched as to not unleash Void again, the New Avengers go on to be featured on Wheaties cereal boxes, which Shostakov eagerly attempts to market.

Fourteen months later, amid an ongoing space crisis, the New Avengers debate Sam Wilson's lawsuit against them over their use of the "Avengers" trademark. Shostakov proposes changing their name to the "New Avengerz." The team then receives an alert from space about an incoming extra-dimensional spacecraft bearing a "4" insignia.

Cast[]

Appearances[]

Locations[]

Events[]

Items[]

Vehicles[]

Sentient Species[]

Creatures[]

Organizations[]

Mentioned[]

Production[]

On June 9, 2022, Deadline reported that a Thunderbolts film was in development with Jake Schreier attached to direct and Eric Pearson penning the script. It was also reported that the film was scheduled to begin production in Summer 2023 and that the cast would consist of some actors who were already part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Marvel Studios taking steps to secure their availability.[2]

On July 23, 2022, at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, Kevin Feige officially announced that the film was in development. He also announced that the film would be released on July 26, 2024.[3]

On September 2, 2022, it was reported that the film would act as a spin-off of Black Widow with Florence Pugh reprising her role as Yelena Belova in the film.[4] At D23 Expo 2022, Kevin Feige announced that David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, and Olga Kurylenko would be reprising their roles as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian, Ava Starr/Ghost, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, John Walker/U.S. Agent, and Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster, respectively, in the film. He also confirmed that Yelena Belova would be a part of the Thunderbolts team in the film.[5]

On October 17, 2022, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Harrison Ford had joined the cast of the film and that he would portray Thaddeus Ross, succeeding the late William Hurt.[6]

On December 20, 2022, it was reported that the working title of the film was "Oops All Berries".[7]

On January 17, 2023, in an interview with Variety, Julia Louis-Dreyfus revealed that the film would start production in June.[8] Later that month, Deadline reported that Ayo Edebiri had joined the cast of the film in an undisclosed role.[9]

On February 23, 2023, Deadline reported that Steven Yeun had joined the cast of the film in an undisclosed key role.[10]

On March 15, 2023, it was reported that the film was expected to begin production on June 12.[11] Later that month, in an interview with Variety, Lee Sung Jin revealed that he would be rewriting the film's script, replacing Eric Pearson.[12]

On May 25, 2023, Deadline reported that the production of the film would be shut down due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and that the film would resume production after the strike was resolved.[13]

On June 8, 2023, it was reported that the film was scheduled to begin production in the summer in Utah, despite a previous report that film would not resume production until after the writers strike was resolved.[14] Five days later, it was announced that the film had been pushed back from its initial release date to December 20, 2024.[15] In November, it was announced that the film had once again been pushed back from its December 20, 2024 release date to July 25, 2025.[16]

On November 17, 2023, Robert Kirkman, who worked with Steven Yeun on Invincible, revealed that Yeun had called to inform him that he would be portraying Sentry in the film and that he had also undergone a costume fitting for the role.[17]

On December 19, 2023, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Wyatt Russell revealed that the film would start production in March or April 2024.[18]

On January 2, 2024, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Steven Yeun had dropped out of the film[19] and Deadline reported that scheduling conflicts caused by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike was the reason for his departure.[20] The next day, in an interview with Variety, Steven Yeun confirmed reports that he had dropped out of the film due to the actors strike and scheduling conflicts.[21]

On January 25, 2024, Deadline reported that Lewis Pullman was in early talks to join the cast of the film, replacing Steven Yeun[22] with the Motion Picture Association reaffirming that the role in question was Sentry.[23] Four days later, Deadline confirmed Pullman's casting. It was also reported that Geraldine Viswanathan had joined the cast of the film in an undisclosed role, replacing Ayo Edebiri who had dropped out of the film due to scheduling conflicts caused by the 2023 Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes.[24]

On February 14, 2024, Deadline reported that the film had been pushed up from its July 25, 2025 release date to May 2, 2025.[25] The following week, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Joanna Calo had been hired by Marvel Studios to work on the film's script.[26]

On February 25, 2024, in an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Florence Pugh revealed that the film had begun production.[27] About a month later, Marvel Studios called the movie Thunderbolts* while sharing the first behind-the-scenes look at the film.[28]

On April 11, 2024, at CinemaCon 2024, Kevin Feige confirmed that the film had been retitled to Thunderbolts*. He also revealed that the film would be released on May 5, 2025.[29]

On June 20, 2024, it was revealed that Joshua Mikel had joined the cast of the film and that he would portray Bob Reynolds' father.[30]

On July 27, 2024, at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, it was revealed that the film would be released on May 2, 2025. It was also revealed that Harrison Ford would not be part of the film's cast as previously reported.[31]

On September 26, 2024, it was revealed that Chris Bauer and Wendell Pierce had joined the cast of the film in undisclosed roles.[32]

On February 9, 2025, it was revealed that Son Lux had composed the film's score.[33]

Videos[]

Trailers[]

TV Spots[]

Clips[]

Featurettes[]

Other[]

Music[]

Song title Artist Location(s)
Where Is My Mind? Pixies Teaser Trailer.
Pony Ginuwine D23 Brazil Special Look.
Red Guardian accidentally turns on the radio during the Chase of Red Guardian's Limousine.
Possum Kingdom Toadies D23 Brazil Special Look.
Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now Starship Big Game Trailer.
Credits
Opr Gesaffelstein Absolute Cinema TV Spot.
Under Pressure Queen & David Bowie Final Trailer.
National Anthem of the Russian Federation Richard M. Lauw and Martin Laschober
Big Blue Eyes Douglas Wood
Roulette Richard Iacona
City Stomp Victor Davies
The Avengers Theme Alan Silvestri
The Fantastic Four: First Steps Main Theme Michael Giacchino The New Avengers witness the Excelsior arriving on Earth.

References[]

The Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Thunderbolts*.
  1. ↑ Thunderbolts* on Marvel.com
  2. ↑ Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’ Movie Taps Jake Schreier As Director
  3. ↑ SDCC 2022: Marvel Studios' 'Thunderbolts' Announced
  4. ↑ MCU: Florence Pugh Reportedly Set to Lead 2024 Marvel Movie
  5. ↑ D23 Expo 2022: Marvel Studios' 'Thunderbolts’ Casting Announced
  6. ↑ Harrison Ford Joining ‘Captain America 4’
  7. ↑ Exclusive: Working Title for Marvel’s Thunderbolts
  8. ↑ Julia Louis-Dreyfus Will Shoot Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’ in June and Demands to Kick Ass: ‘I Really Want to Fight’
  9. ↑ ‘The Bear‘ Breakout Star Ayo Edebiri Joins Marvel Studios’ ‘Thunderbolts’ Movie
  10. ↑ ‘Thunderbolts’: Steven Yeun Joins Marvel Studios Pic In Key Role
  11. ↑ Sebastian Stan’s Next Marvel Movie Gets Start Date (Report)
  12. ↑ Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’ Adds ‘Beef’ Creator Lee Sung Jin as Writer (EXCLUSIVE)
  13. ↑ Marvel Pushes Pause On ‘Thunderbolts’ Production Due To Writers Strike
  14. ↑ A Marvel movie appears set to shoot in Utah, under a secret name
  15. ↑ Marvel Studios Announces Updates to Theatrical Release Schedule
  16. ↑ Marvel Studios Updates Theatrical Release Schedule
  17. ↑ Drawing Omni Man and a conversation with ROBERT KIRKMAN
  18. ↑ ‘Monarch: Legacy of Monsters’ Star Wyatt Russell on Why He Waited to Work With Kurt Russell and ‘Thunderbolts’ Anticipation
  19. ↑ Steven Yeun Will Not Star in Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’
  20. ↑ Steven Yeun Drops Out Of Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’ After Production Was Pushed Due To Strikes
  21. ↑ Steven Yeun Is ‘Sorry’ He Dropped Out of Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts,’ Cites Strike and Scheduling Issues: ‘I Wanna Do a Marvel Movie’
  22. ↑ ‘Thunderbolts’: Lewis Pullman In Early Talks To Join Marvel Studios Pic
  23. ↑ Marvel Studios’ “Thunderbolts” Eyeing “Top Gun: Maverick” Star Lewis Pullman for Big Role
  24. ↑ ‘Thunderbolts’: Geraldine Viswanathan Joins Marvel Studios Pic Stepping In For Ayo Edebiri Who Departs Project Due To Scheduling
  25. ↑ Marvel Moves On Release Date Schedule: ‘Thunderbolts’ Shifts Up, ‘The Fantastic Four’ Moves Back In 2025
  26. ↑ How Marvel Is Quietly Retooling Amid Superhero Fatigue
  27. ↑ Florence Pugh Praises Andrew Garfield While Giving We Live in Time Update (Exclusive)
  28. ↑ Marvel Studios on X - March 27, 2024
  29. ↑ Kevin Feige Comments On Marvel Adding An Asterisk To The Thunderbolts* Movie Title
  30. ↑ Joshua Mikel's Résumé
  31. ↑ SDCC 2024: Marvel Studios’ ‘Thunderbolts*’ Cast Teases the Film in Hall H
  32. ↑ THUNDERBOLTS Project Profile 9-26-24
  33. ↑ Son Lux Scoring Marvel Studios’ ‘Thunderbolts*’

External Links[]

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Phase Five Films Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 • The Marvels • Deadpool & Wolverine • Captain America: Brave New World • Thunderbolts*
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