Marvel is releasing three movies this year and “Thunderbolts*” will be the second to come out on May 2.
A new trailer was released during the Super Bowl, but there are still some questions to be answered. Here is what we know.
What is ‘Thunderbolts*’ about?
According to IMDb, “Thunderbolts*” is about a group of antiheroes that — after finding themselves in a death trap — come together to complete a mission that will cause them to “confront the darkest corners of their pasts.”
The new trailer shows clips of the group members fighting and arguing with each other. This gives the idea that the movie will most likely focus on the team’s struggles of working together.
According to ScreenRant, this will be the final part of Phase Five for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Who are the members of ‘Thunderbolts*’?
The group of “Thunderbolts*” is full of faces that have been seen in previous Marvel movies.
This will help in not having to give a lot of background on the characters during the movie and maybe leave room for some new characters, according to ScreenRant.
Contessa Val
Valentina Allegra De Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), or Contessa Val, appears to be the leader of the group of misfits. She was first seen in “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” when she began her recruitment of powerful individuals.
Yelena Belova
Played by Florence Pugh, Yelena Belova was first introduced as the sister of the late Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) in “Black Widow,” per ScreenRant.
Yelena was originally part of an elite group of trained female assassins, called Widows, that came from the Red Room.
Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier
Sebastian Stan is first seen playing the role of Steve Rogers’ (Chris Evans) childhood best friend, Bucky Barnes, in “Captain America: The First Avenger.”
After supposedly falling to his death in the first movie, he returns as a brainwashed agent for Hydra, with a metal arm and abilities like Captain America in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”
Alexei Shostakov/The Red Guardian
Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour) is first introduced as the father of Yelena and Natasha in “Black Widow” and eventually reveals himself as The Red Guardian in the movie as well.
There is not much more known about him up until now.
John Walker/U.S. Agent
John Walker (Wyatt Russell) first appears in “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” where he takes on the role of Captain America when Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) gives up the shield to the U.S. government.
Walker didn’t start off with the superhuman abilities that the original Captain America had. When he eventually did take the Super Soldier Serum, his mind suffered. This ended up being the cause of him losing his title as Captain America, according to ScreenRant.
Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
Antonia DreyKov (Olga Kurylenko) was introduced as the daughter to the Red Room’s director, DreyKov (Ray Winstone), in “Black Widow.”
After surviving an explosion meant for her father when she was young, Antonia became a slave to him due to a chip put in the back of her neck. The chip also made it so she could mimic the fighting styles of her opponents.
Antonia was freed from her fathers control when Romanoff and Yelena destroyed the Red Room at the end of “Black Widow.”
Ava Starr/Ghost
Hannah John-Kamen’s character, Ava Starr or Ghost, was first seen in “Ant Man and the Wasp,” according to ScreenRant.
According to CBR, Ava became Ghost after her father’s, Elihas (Michael Cerveris), attempts to create a quantum device end up malfunctioning.
Ava’s cells become altered from the excess Quantum Energy, causing her ability of phasing through objects. While this may seem cool, it is actually very painful, while also slowly killing her.
Bob/Sentry
This is Bob’s (Lewis Pullman) — also known as Sentry — first appearance in the MCU and, according to ScreenRant, he is “one of the most powerful heroes in the Marvel Universe.”
Bob becoming Sentry is a product of another reproduction of the Super Soldier Serum, which gave him “Superman-like powers,” according to Polygon. His powers include speed, immense strength, invulnerability, mind manipulation and more.
Who is the villain?
According to Polygon, the villain in “Thunderbolts*” will most likely be a “destructive entity know as ‘the Void.’”
The Void is — in some way — intwined with Sentry and Bob, according to Polygon. It could be that the Void is a product of Bob’s “fragile psyche” and his fears of misusing his powers or an alternative personality of his or something else.
For more answers about the Void, you will have to wait until May 2.
Why is there an asterisk in the title?
Nothing has been said in regards to the asterisk that has — very obviously — been shown in the title.
“Yes, you’ll notice the asterisk on Thunderbolts,” said Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige, according to GameRant. “That is the official title of Thunderbolts, and we won‘t talk more about it until after the movie comes out.”
However, this hasn’t stopped fans from theorizing what it means.
According to GameRant, some fans think it means that the name will change to the actual name of the group by the end of the movie.
Possible names fans have thought of include “The Dark Avengers,” “Secret Avengers” or “New Avengers.” Any of these names could tie into the future role of the antiheroes, per GameRant.
The current name of the movie has a distinct connection to “Captain America: Brave New World,” as the new president of the U.S., Thaddeus Ross’ (Harrison Ford) nickname is “Thunderbolt.” GameRant proposes the idea that this could mean Valentina is taking orders from the new president.
However, the official purpose of the asterisk will be known when the movie comes out.