I’m Convinced ‘Thunderbolts*’ Is Really the MCU Version of These Comics — and You Can’t Tell Me Otherwise
Despite several lengthy trailers and the expected bombardment of TV spots and other promotional material, the upcoming Thunderbolts* has maintained more of an air of mystery than many MCU projects. The nature and size of several characters’ roles remain unclear and this intriguing lack of certainty extends to the film’s title and what specific comics — if any — the movie is really adapting. Though several of the main cast members have been members of the antihero team the Thunderbolts or encountered them in the comics, much of what’s been shown from and said about the film so far suggests that it’s also heavily influenced by a pair of different, interconnected comic series, namely writer Brian Michael Bendis’ New Avengers and Dark Avengers. As the film’s release gets closer, it seems more and more likely that it will serve as the MCU’s equivalent of one or both series, with the conspicuous asterisk in the title possibly foreshadowing the reveal of one of their titles as the film’s new moniker upon its release.
How Would the Thunderbolts Become the New or Dark Avengers?
After becoming one of Marvel Comics’ most popular new writers with his work on Ultimate Spider-Man, Alias, and Daredevil, Bendis became one of the architects of the Avengers franchise. He first wrote the final story arc “Chaos,” more widely known as “Avengers Disassembled,” of the current volume of the Avengers ongoing series (the arc plays out through issues #500-503 as well as the one-off Avengers Finale). As the title implies, that arc featured the dissolution of the Avengers as an official crime-fighting team in the wake of Wanda Maximoff/the Scarlet Witch’s destructive breakdown. This was followed by a new ongoing series, The New Avengers, in which Steve Rogers/Captain America and Tony Stark/Iron Man revive the team with a new roster in the wake of a mass supervillain prison break.
Bendis continued working on this and related titles for eight years, during which he also led and contributed to several of Marvel’s major crossover events, such as Secret Invasion and Siege, in which members of the New Avengers played key roles. Relatively late in his tenure, the team began to feud with the Dark Avengers, a group of supervillains (many of whom were former members of the Thunderbolts) who had co-opted superhero identities under the command of Norman Osborn, the Spider-Man villain also known as the Green Goblin, when he was given command of the intelligence agency S.H.I.E.L.D., which he renamed H.A.M.M.E.R. The Dark Avengers starred in their own brief ongoing series, also written by Bendis.
Like the early stories in this run, the marketing for Thunderbolts* has emphasized that its protagonists come together to make up for the absence of a traditional Avengers team, with Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), initially seeming to force his new teammates made up of semi-reformed assassins and other antiheroes to help him save the world. The film and New Avengers also seem to share thematic focuses on the unconventional nature of their respective teams. Thunderbolts* trailers and promos have shown that many of the characters, including the leads themselves, doubt their abilities to function as a team and/or become legitimate superheroes, given their dark pasts. Most of the cast members of The New Avengers were much more established superheroes, but the title was known for creating eclectic groups by mixing classic Avengers characters like Steve and Tony with those who had previously had little to do with the team and usually appear in more gritty, often dark storylines, such as Luke Cage and Wolverine.
What About Bob?
Another of the unconventional additions the first arc made to the franchise’s cast was Robert “Bob” Reynolds/The Sentry, a mysterious crime fighter some consider to be the most powerful superhuman on Earth who struggles with severe mental health issues and had recently had himself incarcerated under the assumption that he had killed his own wife. Bob and his alternate, villainous persona “The Void” were fixtures for most of Bendis’ run of the franchise, eventually being manipulated by Osborn into serving on the Dark Avengers until he is seemingly killed by Thor (at Bob’s request), so The Void will no longer be a threat in Siege #4. The character will make his MCU debut in Thunderbolts*, played by Lewis Pullman, with The Void appearing to be one of the major antagonists in the film. In addition to his role and the general premise, a few more notable details further connect the film to the Bendis-era Avengers comics. New Avengers featured the introduction of Stark/Avengers tower as the team’s new headquarters, with Bob eventually positioning his own superpowered Watchtower on top of the building, which is also later taken over by Osborn and the Dark Avengers.
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The Man Without Fear deserves another chance on the big screen.
Thunderbolts* marketing has revealed that CIA director Contessa Valentina “Val” Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who has seemed like a slightly more stable, if no less ruthless, stand-in for Dark Avengers-era Osborn since her introduction, has purchased the MCU version of the building and herself renamed it “Watchtower,” with trailers also showing what appears to be a significant action scene involving Bob taking place inside and around it. It’s also worth noting that Bucky served on the New Avengers during his tenure as Captain America in the comics and that Black Widow Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), the apparent main character of Thunderbolts*, was involved in the series’ first arc (issues #1-6) and the first issue of The New Avengers Annual, although in villainous roles. Thunderbolts* even presumably takes place after the MCU Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) went on a similarly destructive rampage in the 2022 film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, though this doesn’t seem to be a major influence on the upcoming film’s story.
Could ‘Thunderbolts*’ Get a Title Change?
The meaning of the asterisk has been one of the main points of speculation about Thunderbolts* leading up to its release. Several of the trailers and promos have highlighted Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour) enthusiastically calling for the makeshift team to be referred to as the Thunderbolts, only for his annoyed teammates to refuse. The asterisk could simply be a cheeky official acknowledgment of this apparently recurring joke, but it could also foreshadow the film revealing a different title upon release, similar to what The Falcon and the Winter Soldier miniseries did in its final episode. “Dark Avengers” is arguably a more dynamic title than “New Avengers,” but also may contrast with one of the apparent themes of the film, which seems to be that the team, with the possible exception of Bob, are all ultimately good people worthy of redemption, unlike Osborn’s comic group, who simply masquerade as heroes for their own ends.
But if the MCU characters are ultimately referred to as Avengers (no matter the iteration), it could also explain a peculiar point about a subsequent Marvel project. Marvel Studios recently pulled off one of its most unusual but successful marketing stunts with a video revealing part of the immense cast of the 2026 film Avengers: Doomsday. However, as excited as fans were by this, some were also left somewhat confused, as the announcement included most of the main Thunderbolts* cast members, as well as key actors from the X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises, but was comparatively light on actors whose characters are officially considered Avengers or closely associated with the group in-universe, even though the recently released Captain America: Brave New World ended with Sam Wilson/Captain America (Anthony Mackie) resolving to rebuild the group. This odd detail could be explained by Sam’s efforts being complicated or completely upended by the Thunderbolts actually being referred to as the new version of the Avengers within the narrative.
Thunderbolts* is in theaters May 2 in the U.S.
- Release Date
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May 2, 2025
- Runtime
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126 Minutes
- Director
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Jake Schreier
- Writers
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Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo
- Franchise(s)
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Marvel Cinematic Universe
