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Read on only if you don't mind reading spoilers for the film. | |
Thunderbolts* (the asterisk was later revealed to stand for The New Avengers) is the thirty-sixth film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the final film of Phase Five that features a team of anti-heroes led by Bucky Barnes who must go after Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.
Plot[]
In Malaysia, Yelena Belova destroys a laboratory on behalf of CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine to conceal her involvement with the O.X.E. Group's "Sentry" superhuman project. As de Fontaine faces imminent impeachment for her work with O.X.E. Group, she dispatches Belova, John Walker, Ghost, and Taskmaster to a covert O.X.E facility under the pretense of a mission. Once there, the operatives are pitted against one another in a deadly confrontation where Ghost kills Taskmaster before a mysterious man named Bob unexpectedly appears. Upon learning that they were sent by de Fontaine to be incinerated along with any evidence of her misconduct, they manage to escape from the trap.
De Fontaine learns that the group has survived, including Bob, who was presumed dead during the Sentry trials. When she arrives at the site, Bob creates a diversion by drawing enemy fire without sustaining injury, allowing Belova, Walker and Ghost to escape. Bob then ascends into the air before crash-landing back at the compound, where he is captured and transported to the former Avengers Tower in New York City, now renamed the "Watchtower". Meanwhile, Alexei Shostakov, who had overheard details of de Fontaine's plot while working as a freelance chauffeur, rescues Belova, Walker, and Ghost. Inspired by Belova's childhood soccer team, Shostakov dubs the group the "Thunderbolts".
The Thunderbolts are pursued by de Fontaine's agents before they are ultimately apprehended by Bucky Barnes, who intends to have them testify in the impeachment proceedings. Upon learning that Bob was a subject of one of de Fontaine's top-secret experiments, Barnes joins forces with the group to head to New York to infiltrate the Watchtower. The Thunderbolts discover that de Fontaine has turned Bob into an immensely powerful superhuman known as the Sentry, who easily overpowers the team and forces them to retreat. As the Sentry develops a god-like delusion of superiority, he turns on de Fontaine. However, her assistant, Mel, incapacitates him with a failsafe kill switch. This triggers the emergence of the Sentry's destructive alter ego, the Void, who begins turning everyone in his vicinity into shadows and engulfs New York City in supernatural darkness.
Knowing the only way to stop the Void is from within, Belova enters the shadow realm to reach Bob's consciousness. There, she faces her own haunted past as a Black Widow and finds Bob hiding in a mental construct of his childhood bedroom. They are soon joined by the Thunderbolts, and together, they travel back to the memory of Bob's initial experimentation in Malaysia. The Thunderbolts confront the Void, but are swiftly overpowered. As the struggle threatens to fully consume Bob, the team intervenes, affirming their belief in him. Their solidarity empowers Bob to regain control, overcoming the Void as light and normalcy are returned to the city.
With the threat neutralized, the Thunderbolts prepare to apprehend de Fontaine. However, she manipulates public perception by staging a press conference in which she rebrands them as the New Avengers. In a post-credits scene, the New Avengers and Bob discuss an ongoing problem in outer space when they receive a distress signal from an interdimensional spacecraft with a large "4" emblem.
Cast[]
- Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova/Black Widow
- Violet McGraw as Young Yelena
- Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
- Chiara Stella as Young Valentina
- Lewis Pullman as Bob Reynolds/Sentry/Void
- Clayton Cooper as Young Bob
- David Harbour as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian
- Wyatt Russell as John Walker/U.S. Agent
- Hannah John-Kamen as Ava Starr/Ghost
- Olga Kurylenko as Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
- Geraldine Viswanathan as Mel Gold
- Wendell Pierce as Gary
- Chris Bauer as Holt
- Alexa Swinton as Anya
- Eric Lange as Houston
- Stefano Carannante as Valentina's Father
- Gianfranco Terrin as Nico
- Gabrielle Byndloss as Olivia Walker
- Joshua Mikel as Bob's Dad
- Molly Carden as Bob's Mom
Continuity and References to the Marvel Cinematic Universe[]
- Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier appears.
- Yelena Belova/Black Widow appears.
- Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian appears.
- John Walker/US Agent appears.
- Ava Starr/Ghost appears.
- Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster appears.
- Thaddeus Ross appears.
- Valentina Allegra de Fontaine appears.
- Olivia Walker appears.
- Robert Reynolds/Sentry is introduced
- Mel Gold is introduced.
- Thunderbolts is formed and rebranded as The New Avengers.
- Excelsior is introduced.
- Watchtower appears.
- Disc Grenade appears.
- Stark Sonic Cannon appears.
- Chitauri Scepter appears.
- Chitauri Gun appears.
- Chitauri Staff appears.
- Chitauri Handcuffs appears.
- Steve Rogers is mentioned.
- Sam Wilson/Captain America is mentioned.
- Thaddeus Ross/Red Hulk is mentioned.
- Clint Barton is mentioned.
- Tony Stark/Iron Man is mentioned.
- Thor Odinson is mentioned.
- Nico is mentioned.
- Natasha Romanoff and her death from Avengers: Endgame is mentioned.
- The Avengers were mentioned.
- S.H.I.E.L.D. is mentioned.
- HYDRA is mentioned.
- Red Room is mentioned.
- Super Soldier Serum is mentioned.
- Captain America's Shield is mentioned.
- Hawkeye's Bow and Quiver is shown in photo.
- Captain America Uniform is shown in photo.
- Chitauri is mentioned.
- Asgardians is mentioned.
- The Battle of New York is mentioned.
- The Ambush at the Latvian GRC Resettlement Camp is mentioned.
- The Duel of Washington, D.C. is mentioned.
- The Chase for the Red Dust is mentioned.
- The Attack on Avengers Tower is mentioned.
Taglines[]
- Careful Who You Assemble.
- Everybody deserves a Second Shot!
- Not Super. Not Heroes. Not Giving Up.
Production[]
The film was shot in Atlanta, Georgia, Utah and Kuala Lumpur.
Gallery[]
Promotion[]
.jpg "Yelena Belova (Thunderbolts).jpg (413 KB)")
.jpg "John Walker (Thunderbolts).jpg (405 KB)")
Videos[]
