As a seasoned Marvel fan who has witnessed the rise and fall of countless heroes and villains, I find myself intrigued by the upcoming ensemble known as the Thunderbolts*. This team, set to debut in 2025, boasts an eclectic roster, each member with their unique backstory that resonates deeply within the Marvel Universe.
In the Marvel Studios film Thunderbolts, CIA Director Val (played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus) addresses a group of characters who are not all heroes. She says, “There’s good guys and there’s bad guys, but there are even worse ones.” The upcoming MCU movie after Captain America: Brave New World introduces this team, which includes Yelena Belova/Black Widow (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Bob Reynolds/Sentry (Lewis Pullman). Yelena explains that the team consists of individuals who have committed wrongdoings, such as performing shadow operations, stealing from government labs, and carrying out contract kills. She warns, “Someone wants us eliminated.
The Thunderbolts in the Comics: Justice, Like Lightning…
RELATED: Marvel’s Thunderbolts Comics Featuring Black Widow and Winter Soldier Strike in 2025
In the comics, Baron Helmut Zemo created the Thunderbolts as a malicious substitute for the Avengers when they were absent. Originally a group of villains disguised as heroes, the initial Thunderbolts team included Citizen V (Zemo), Techno (Fixer), Atlas (Goliath), MACH-1 (Beetle), Meteorite (Moonstone), Screaming Mimi (Songbird), and Jolt. As time passed, they adopted heroism and sought redemption, turning against Zemo when he revealed his deceitful intentions.
Lately, I’ve been part of an exciting transformation under Mayor Cage. We’ve restructured the Thunderbolts, and now I’m proud to be working alongside Hawkeye, Monica Rambeau/Photon, America Chavez, and the latest Power Man as team members.
Who Are the MCU Thunderbolts*?
Yelena Belova: Black Widow
A character named Yelena, who was once an assassin and undercover agent for the Red Room, had been trained alongside her adoptive sister Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). They were all brought up by Alexei and Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz). In 2021’s movie Black Widow, the family came together to stop Soviet General Dreykov (Ray Winstone) and free the brainwashed Black Widows from the Red Room Academy. Unfortunately, Yelena was killed when Thanos (Josh Brolin) eliminated half of the universe’s population with a snap.
James “Bucky” Barnes: The Winter Soldier
In World War II, Bucky Barnes, a soldier in the United States Army and former comrade of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), served as the first Captain America. Rumored dead in enemy territory (as depicted in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger), Barnes was captured by HYDRA and administered with the Super Soldier Serum, leading him to become their assassin known as the Winter Soldier for five decades.
Movies featuring Captain America:
Alexei Shostakov: Red Guardian
In a world where Captain America had a Soviet counterpart, that honor fell to Alexei Shostakov, the first and only super soldier of the Soviet Union. In the ’90s, I was part of a covert operation orchestrated by Dreykov, posing as a family with Melina Vostokoff, Natasha Romanoff, and her sister Yelena. Our mission was to infiltrate the North Institute in Ohio, where HYDRA was secretly advancing the Winter Soldier project.
John Walker: U.S. Agent
A retired Army Ranger Captain, decorated with three Medals of Honor for his service in Afghanistan, John Walker was appointed as the new Captain America in 2024. Taking up the shield once belonged to Sam Wilson and donated to the Smithsonian, the government-approved Cap was joined by his longtime friend, Army Sergeant Major Lemar Hoskins (Clè Bennett), who became his partner, Battlestar.
Antonia Dreykov: Taskmaster
In 2008, during the Budapest Operation, a bomb meant to kill Dreykov almost claimed the life of his daughter Antonia. The operation was led by Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff, who had defected to S.H.I.E.L.D. Following her near-death experience and disfigurement, Dreykov installed a control device in Antonia’s neck and raised her in the Red Room, transforming her into his deadliest assassin, Taskmaster.
Ava Starr: Ghost
A young woman named Ava Starr, daughter of a scientist who studied the Quantum Realm with Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne), gained her powers due to a fatal accident in a quantum experiment conducted by her father, Elihas Starr (Michael Cerveris). The incident granted her abilities of invisibility and phase-shifting through different quantum dimensions, allowing her to pass through objects.
Bob Reynolds: The Sentry
RELATED: Who Is Bob in Thunderbolts*? Marvel’s Sentry, Explained
In a seemingly underground area of the newly owned Avengers Tower, Robert “Bob” Reynolds meets Yelena, U.S. Agent, and Ghost. The enigmatic figure in a hospital gown is believed to be Sentry, a solar-powered superhero from comics, who hides the malevolent entity, the Void, within his true identity. Originally a result of “Project Sentry,” an endeavor aimed at replicating the super-soldier serum that transformed Steve Rogers into Captain America, Bob was a man struggling with schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, and agoraphobia. He illegally obtained the Sentry serum for recreational purposes. Later, he joined Norman Osborn’s Thunderbolts during his tenure as H.A.M.M.E.R. Director when he established the Dark Avengers.
Appearances: Thunderbolts* (2025)
Marvel Studios’ Thunderbolts* strikes theaters on May 2, 2025.
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2024-11-11 04:10