New trailer for Marvel’s Thunderbolts movie reveals official look at Lewis Pullman’s Bob and Yelena Belova’s anti-hero team after August teaser leak
Possible spoilers follow for Lightning bolts.
The first official trailer for Marvel’s Lightning bolts movie has hit online – and it makes me feel better Captain America: The Winter Soldier vibrations then Secret Invasion ever done.
Just over a month (at the time of writing) after Lightning bolts‘ D23 Expo 2024 teaser leaked online , Marvel has seen fit to release a higher quality, extended version of said footage for Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fans to pore through. The nearly three-and-a-half minute long teaser is indeed packed with action, returning fan-favorite (and brand new!) characters, and plenty of political/paranoid thriller sensibilities. Suffice to say, the final Marvel Phase 5 film is looking pretty darn good from my perspective.
Just like the copied trailer, Lightning bolts‘ official teaser begins with Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova meeting her estranged father Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (played by Stranger Things‘ David Harbour) and admitting that she feels emotionally unfulfilled. Remember, the last time we saw Jelena – in 2021’s Black Widow film and the Hawk’s Eye TV series – not only had she lost her sister Natasha Romanov/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) after the events of Avengers: Infinity War And Avengers: Endgamebut also decided not to kill Clint Barton in Hawk’s Eye.
Belova isn’t the only one struggling with his self-esteem. John Walker, who readers may remember from The Falcon and the Winter Soldieris not in a good place mentally after his reputation was tarnished on that Disney Plus show. Elsewhere, James “Bucky” Barnes is seen looking a little disillusioned as he enters a courtroom.
It’s clear that this trio – plus Red Guardian and other returning minor villains including Ghost and Taskmaster – still have some problems to solve. So what better way to do that than to be sent on the same secret mission to rescue or exterminate a… mysterious character named Bob? Yes, it appears that some of the aforementioned individuals are being pitted against each other by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, the Machiavellian individual played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, in tracking down Bob for reasons unknown. Bob will be played by Lewis Pullman following his casting in January and, without further ado, at Bob and his alter ego, the super-powered Sentry, are supposed to play a big part in the plot.
Experience Marvel Studios’ #Thunderbolts* only in theaters May 2025. pic.twitter.com/j9iDjHOoc7September 23, 2024
What makes it even more delicious is that these morally complex characters will have to work together at some point. It seems that the anti-hero crew, which Belova appears to be leading, will be sent on other infiltration missions. Although, judging by the fact that Bucky attacks Belova, Red Guardian, and Walker towards the end of the teaser, it seems as though the uneasy alliances between them will be temporary for some individuals.
Lightning bolts‘ first trailer, not to mention the long-awaited film itself. The next MCU team-up film was rumored to be in development in June 2022, before Marvel officially announced it a month later. Since then, Lightning bolts has faced numerous setbacks, including multiple release date delays due to the 2023 Hollywood strikes, the departure of actors like Steven Yeun and Ayo Edebiri due to scheduling issues, and the aforementioned teaser leak.
Fortunately, the recording could finally begin at the end of March, after Lightning bolts has weathered its creative storm, with principal photography surprisingly wrapping up in June. As mentioned, Marvel revealed the first images from the film exclusively to attendees of D23 Expo 2024 in mid-August, before giving a first look Lightning bolts image later that month, while the company was leaking the D23 trailer.
Lightning bolts will hit theaters worldwide on May 2, 2025, and at the time of writing will be one of three new Marvel Studios films that fans can enjoy next year – the others being Captain America: Brave New World And The Fantastic Four: First Steps.