Thunderbolts* is a 2025 Marvel Studios film about a group of damaged, politically useful operatives forced into an alliance. Directed by Jake Schreier, the PG-13 movie places Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, U.S. Agent, Ghost, Taskmaster and Bob Reynolds in a mission controlled by CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.
The asterisk is not decorative: by the end of the film, the group adopts a different name. The movie remains officially titled Thunderbolts*, while the assembled team becomes the New Avengers.
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Thunderbolts* - 4K + Blu-ray + Digital | $44.79 | Buy on Amazon |
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Marvel Studios: Thunderbolts* (2025) [Blu-ray] | $34.95 | Buy on Amazon |
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Thunderbolts* (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray) | $41.20 | Buy on Amazon |
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Thunderbolts* | $19.99 | Buy on Amazon |
What is Thunderbolts* about?
The film follows a team assembled from people who do not fit comfortably into the traditional superhero mold. Some are former villains, some are government operatives and others are antiheroes carrying the consequences of earlier choices.
Yelena Belova is at the center of the story, struggling with isolation and the unresolved effects of her work as an assassin. Bucky Barnes is attempting to turn his history as the Winter Soldier into something constructive. Alexei Shostakov, also known as Red Guardian, brings loud confidence and complicated feelings about his past. John Walker, the former U.S. Agent, remains powerful, abrasive and politically useful. Ava Starr, or Ghost, has an unstable relationship with her own body after the quantum accident that gave her abilities.
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- After being ensnared in a death trap, an unconventional team of antiheroes assembles and embarks on a dangerous mission. Forced to confront the darkest corners of their pasts, will the group tear themselves apart, or find redemption and prevail?
They are brought together during an operation connected to Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. The mission quickly becomes a trap, leaving the group with no practical choice but to cooperate. Their immediate problem is survival, but the larger threat comes from Bob Reynolds, whose transformation into the super-powered Sentry releases the Void, a destructive manifestation linked to his psychological distress.
Cast and characters
| Actor | Character | Role in the film |
|---|---|---|
| Florence Pugh | Yelena Belova | A highly capable operative confronting grief, guilt and isolation |
| Sebastian Stan | Bucky Barnes / Winter Soldier | A former brainwashed assassin trying to act as a leader |
| David Harbour | Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian | Yelena’s overconfident but caring father figure |
| Wyatt Russell | John Walker / U.S. Agent | A disgraced super-soldier with government connections |
| Hannah John-Kamen | Ava Starr / Ghost | An unstable, intangible fighter |
| Olga Kurylenko | Taskmaster | A combat specialist involved in the opening operation |
| Lewis Pullman | Bob Reynolds / Sentry | A vulnerable man transformed by Valentina’s experiment |
| Julia Louis-Dreyfus | Valentina Allegra de Fontaine | The CIA director whose covert plans bring the team together |
Geraldine Viswanathan plays Mel, Wendell Pierce plays Congressman Gary and Chris Bauer plays Jesse, Yelena’s handler.
Spoilers: what happens in the film?
Taskmaster dies near the beginning. The character is not a continuing member of the team. Director Jake Schreier described the death as an intentional choice designed to establish that the operation has immediate and serious consequences.
The surviving characters eventually discover that Bob is not simply an ordinary recruit. Valentina’s super-soldier experiment has turned him into Sentry, a figure with extraordinary power. The same process also unleashes the Void. Rather than treating the Void as a conventional external villain, the film connects the threat to Bob’s mental and emotional suffering. His power and vulnerability are inseparable.
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Rank #2
- Can this disparate group of antiheroes overcome their difficult pasts and form a real team capable of stopping the Void and saving the world?
Why does the title have an asterisk?
The title was presented as a mystery during the marketing campaign. The explanation arrives at the end, when the group is publicly recognized as the New Avengers. The end-title sequence changes from “Thunderbolts” to “The New Avengers,” providing the meaning behind the asterisk.
That does not mean Marvel formally renamed the film. Disney’s official listing remains Thunderbolts*. “The New Avengers” describes the team’s in-story identity and also appears in promotional language such as Thunderbolts* The New Avengers.
Credits scenes and MCU connections
The film has two credits scenes. The first is a comic follow-up focused on the team’s public image. The second points toward a future MCU storyline involving the Fantastic Four and establishes the next major direction for the group. Viewers who want to avoid future-story spoilers should leave the second scene unexamined until they have watched the film.
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Within the MCU, Thunderbolts* is part of Phase Five. Its importance is not limited to introducing another super-team. The movie changes the status of several characters and places a new group in the space traditionally associated with the Avengers.
Release, runtime and availability
Thunderbolts* opened in U.S. cinemas on May 2, 2025. Disney lists the runtime as 2 hours 6 minutes; Box Office Mojo lists it as 2 hours 7 minutes. The film is rated PG-13.
| Release format | Date or status |
|---|---|
| U.S. theatrical release | May 2, 2025 |
| Digital purchase | July 1, 2025 |
| Blu-ray and DVD | July 29, 2025 |
| Disney+ streaming | August 27, 2025 |
Disney currently lists Thunderbolts* among the Marvel titles available on Disney+; availability can vary by territory and may change.
Reception and box office
Metacritic lists the film at 68 out of 100, in its “Generally Favorable” category. Rotten Tomatoes maintains separate critic and audience aggregates, but those percentages can change as its review database is updated, so any quoted figure should include the date it was checked.
According to Box Office Mojo, the film earned approximately $74.3 million in its U.S. opening across 4,330 theaters. Its reported totals are approximately $190.3 million domestically, $192.2 million internationally and $382.4 million worldwide.
A production budget of about $180 million is often reported by industry sources, including The Numbers. Marvel and Disney do not identify that figure on the official film page, so it should be treated as an industry estimate rather than an official studio disclosure.
Basic production details
- Studio: Marvel Studios
- Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
- Director: Jake Schreier
- Screenplay: Eric Pearson and Joanna Calo
- Story: Eric Pearson
- Producer: Kevin Feige
- Music: Son Lux
- MCU phase: Phase Five
What the film is really about
At a story level, Thunderbolts* is less interested in assembling a perfect squad than in showing how people with compromised histories might become useful to one another. Yelena, Bucky, Walker, Ghost and Red Guardian do not erase their pasts. Instead, the group’s reluctant cooperation gives those pasts a new context.
Rank #4
That makes the asterisk meaningful beyond the final name change. The team begins as a disposable government project assembled by Valentina. It ends as a public superhero unit with a larger responsibility. The name changes because the group’s function changes.
FAQ
Is the film officially called The New Avengers?
No. Marvel and Disney continue to list the film under its official title, Thunderbolts*. The New Avengers is the name the team adopts within the story, which explains the asterisk.
Who is the villain in Thunderbolts*?
The main threat is the Void, the destructive alter ego released when Bob Reynolds becomes the Sentry. The film connects the Void to Bob’s psychological distress rather than presenting it as an entirely separate character.
Does Taskmaster survive Thunderbolts*?
No. Taskmaster is killed near the beginning of the film and is not one of the continuing members of the team.
Where can viewers watch Thunderbolts*?
Disney currently lists the movie on Disney+. It was also released for digital purchase on July 1, 2025, and on Blu-ray and DVD on July 29, 2025. Availability may differ by country.
The Bottom Line
Thunderbolts* is a Phase Five MCU film about a reluctant group of morally complicated operatives who become something larger than Valentina’s disposable mission. Its major reveals are Bob’s identity as the Sentry, the Void’s connection to his distress, Taskmaster’s early death and the team’s eventual transition into the New Avengers. The official movie title remains Thunderbolts*.
Quick Recap
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