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Credit: Marvel StudiosA new development has surfaced in response to an ever-changing global political climate.
Thunderbolts* Debuts May 2, 2025
The first full-length trailer for Thunderbolts* (2025) made a major splash last year when it dropped online, racking up an impressive 12 million YouTube views. The footage gave fans their first look at the returning team of antiheroes and introduced the newest addition to the MCU: Sentry.
It also offered a glimpse of the character “Bob,” played by new actor Lewis Pullman, who replaced Steven Yeun (Beef, The Walking Dead) after he departed the project earlier in 2024.
The highly anticipated Marvel Studios entry arrives on May 2, 2025, under the direction of Jake Schreier (Paper Towns), and it’s set to close out the studio’s current Phase Five.
This chapter of the Marvel Cinematic Universe launched in 2023 with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and has been marked by increased scrutiny over creative choices and box office returns, with The Marvels (2023) struggling to find its footing.
Still, Marvel scored big in 2024 with Deadpool & Wolverine, which broke records to become the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time—a win that arrived at a crucial moment for the studio. That said, the follow-up to Shawn Levy’s major blockbuster–Julius Onah’s Captain America: Brave New World (2025)–only just topped $400 million when it opened in February.
Fans of Marvel’s more grounded ensemble stories will recognize several familiar faces in the Thunderbolts* trailer, including Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova/Black Widow), David Harbour (Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian), Wyatt Russell (John Walker/U.S. Agent), Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Valentina Allegra de Fontaine), Hannah John-Kamen (Ava Starr/Ghost), Olga Kurylenko (Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster), and Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier). While Stan was last seen in a cameo capacity in Captain America: Brave New World, the tenured MCU actor returns to lead the charge here.
Over time, footage, including the aforementioned first look plus the latest A24-inspired trailer, has revealed a number of key things, including the new owner of Avengers Tower and the debut of Pullman’s “Bob,” AKA Sentry.
Thunderbolts* Gets Update Amid Global Fallout
Earlier this week, Thunderbolts* received new international treatment in the form of a poster aimed at Chinese audiences. Interestingly, the Chinese market for Marvel Studios’ projects has been turbulent since 2019, following a ban on all Marvel movie releases.
“The Marvel titles that were blocked from release in China include Black Widow, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Eternals, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Thor: Love and Thunder,” Euro News reported in 2023 after the ban was lifted.
@FLYT0WINTER shared the Thunderbolts* update:
Thunderbolts* Promotional Poster for China. Premiering nationwide on April 30.
Thunderbolts* Promotional Poster for China. Premiering nationwide on April 30.
🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰 pic.twitter.com/moAGkVDy0l— Mon (@FLYT0WINTER) April 8, 2025
However, while Thunderbolts* seems to be following in the previous Phase Five movie’s footsteps and getting its release in the second-largest movie market, there are fresh concerns when it comes to the distribution of these Hollywood blockbusters.
“Though nothing has been confirmed, a new report from Bloomberg notes that at least two major Chinese media outlets have posted an identical set of measures that authorities are said to be considering as a means to hit back at the latest tariff threats from President Donald Trump, including levies on American farm goods and a ban on Hollywood movies,” Comic Book Movie explained.
The report allegedly states that part of the retaliation to Trump’s tax increase measures on the country could include, “reducing or banning the import of US films,” as well as “investigating the intellectual property benefits of US companies operating in China,” and “imposing curbs on US services with China.”
If global tensions do continue to escalate and these measures take effect, then the Hollywood landscape may be set to change forever.
Thunderbolts* and Avengers: Doomsday
Ever since Marvel Studios began rolling out promotional material for Thunderbolts*—including a stylized new trailer that has drawn comparisons to A24’s signature tone—fans have been quick to point out something peculiar: Olga Kurylenko’s Antonia Dreykov, better known as Taskmaster, appears to have a surprisingly small presence.
She’s largely absent from several major team shots and ensemble sequences, prompting speculation that the character introduced in 2021’s Black Widow might not make it out of director Jake Schreier’s upcoming film alive. And recent developments may be lending further credence to that theory.
On March 26, Marvel unveiled the sprawling 25-member cast of Avengers: Doomsday during a lengthy livestream event. The highly anticipated Phase Six film, helmed by the Russo Brothers, is expected to bring together key players from across the MCU, including the Thunderbolts* roster: Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, Wyatt Russell, and David Harbour.
Notably absent from the lineup? Olga Kurylenko. The omission hasn’t gone unnoticed, especially with Lewis Pullman—who appears in Thunderbolts*—confirmed for Doomsday. Online chatter has since intensified, with some fans accusing Marvel of inadvertently revealing Taskmaster’s fate before the film even hits theaters.
Are you looking forward to Thunderbolts*? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!