The trailer for Thunderbolts is out now with the movie set to see its release on May 2, 2025. This movie will show us several villains we have seen previously in different Marvel projects come together with Yelena and Red Guardian. There will be some new faces as well but most of the people you will see in Thunderbolts will be the characters you already know about. So, without much delay, let’s look into the Thunderbolts cast and characters.
1. Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova/White Widow
After making her first appearance in 2021’s Black Widow, Yelena reappeared in Hawkeye where she was hired by Valentina. Now, she is coming back as the lead protagonist of Thunderbolts where she will probably act as the leader of this team of misfits. The trailer suggests that she has lost purpose and feels kind of empty and maybe forming this team will lead her to find her purpose. However, to know for sure, we will have to wait for the movie to hit the theaters.
2. David Harbour as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian
Alexei was a supersoldier created by the Russians to become a national symbol just like Steve Rogers was for the United States of America. However, in his case, when the Russian government tried to replicate the super soldier serum, it was not as potent as the one given to Steve Rogers. The Russian version of it gave Alexei all the powers Captain America had but not to the same extent.
His first live-action appearance was seen in Black Widow (2021) where he became one of the fan favourite characters. Now, he is coming back to the big screen in Thunderbolts as one of the team members and will probably play an important role in the overall plot of the movie.
3. Wyatt Russell as John Walker/US Agent
Wyatt Russell joined the MCU as John Walker. He was given the mantle of Captain America when Steve Rogers retired and Sam refused to take up the mantle. Initially, he was thought to be a good fit for the role but his ego and pride eventually turned him into something Captain America would never become. Everything went south when he brutally murdered a flag smasher with Captain America’s shield. That was the very first-time blood was seen on Captain’s shield.
Eventually, he was removed from the position but was later hired by Valentina to be the US Agent now that he is a part of the Thunderbolts cast, let’s see if there’s still some good in him.
4. Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier
Bucky Barnes is probably one of the most loved characters in the MCU and the dearest friend of Captain America. He was a squadmate of Steve Rogers in the Howling Commandoes and during a mission, he apparently fell to his death. However, he was captured by Hydra and turned into the Winter Soldier, a lethal assassin. His human side was unlocked by Captain America and eventually, he was rehabilitated in Wakanda under the care of Shuri and Black Panther.
Bucky then played an important part in Sam Wilson’s transition from being the Falcon to Captain America in Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Now, he will be appearing again in Thunderbolts and is probably going to be a key member of the team.
5. Hannah John-Kamen as Ava Starr/Ghost
When Hannah John-Kamen made her debut as Ghost in Ant-Man and The Wasp, it was assumed that she was not going to make another appearance in the MCU and be just a one-and-done villain. However, she is making a comeback in Thunderbolts with a new suit. The extent of her character is still unknown. So let’s wait and see what we will get to see in Thunderbolts.
6. Olga Kurylenko as Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
Taskmaster is probably one of the most dangerous characters in Marvel Comics and this is the reason why when Marvel Cinematic Universe did a gender swap on the character, majorly changed its costume, and people were not at all happy with it. However, she’s still making a comeback in Thunderbolts cast and people still have mixed feelings about the character.
This version of Taskmaster was introduced to us also in Black Widow (2021) and was under the control of a chip installed in her by her father General Dreykov. Due to this chip, she was able to copy anyone’s fighting style and was under the control of her father. However, Natasha Romanoff freed her from this and now she is going to appear in Thunderbolts.
7. Lewis Pullman as Bob/ Sentry
The newest character being introduced in the MCU has named himself to be Bob. However, his real name is Robert Reynolds. In the comics, Robert Reynolds is the Sentry, an extremely powerful superhero. If we talk about his powers, Sentry has the powers of invulnerability, flight, energy projection, super strength, and enhanced senses. Above all, he draws power from the Sun’s radiation.
Initially, Steven Yeun was supposed to take up this role but had to drop out of the movie because of scheduling conflicts and he was replaced by Lewis Pullman. As far as my assumption goes, we will not see the full potential of Sentry’s powers for a large part of the movie but he will still retain some of the powers like invulnerability. I have a hunch that he is going to play a major turning point in the plot so let’s wait and see what happens.
8. Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Contessa Valentina Allegra De Fontaine
Julia Louis-Dreyfus made her debut as Contessa Valentina Allegra De Fontaine, a mysterious woman who appeared by the end of Falcon and The Winter Soldier making an attempt to recruit John Walker and give him the identity of US Agent. Then she made an appearance in the post-credit scene of Black Widow where she recruited Yelena to assassinate Hawkeye. Her true identity was revealed in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where it was revealed that she is the head of CIA. So, there is a possibility that Thunderbolts might turn out to be a government funded team working as a replacement for the team of the world’s greatest superheroes. This might possibly be the reason why Marvel’s Thunderbolt has an asterisk in the title.
9. Harrison Ford as President Thaddeus Ross
Even though it has not been confirmed yet, there are rumors suggesting that Harrison Ford might make an appearance in Thunderbolts as President Thaddeus Ross which will later on be connected to the upcoming Captain America: Brave New World. Fan theories suggest that in Thunderbolts, we might get to see how Thaddeus turned himslef into the Red Hulk. We can also assume that if this turns out to be the case, The Thunderbolts could show up in Captain America: Brave New World and Sam Wilson could end up becoming the leader of this new team of not-so-heroic heroes.
Aparna Ukil
