Thunderbolts* (2025) is a superhero film adapted from Marvel Comics, directed by Jake Schreier and starring Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan. The film is part of the MCU and was released by Marvel Studios. Runtime: 2h 7m. Rated PG-13. Audience rating: 7.5/10.
What is Thunderbolts* (2025) about?
A group of supervillains and antiheroes — Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, U.S. Agent, Ghost, and the mysterious Sentry — are forced into an unlikely team for a deadly mission that could reshape the MCU's understanding of who gets to be called a hero.
Released in 2025, Thunderbolts* was directed by Jake Schreier and produced under the Marvel Studios banner. The film occupies a significant place within the MCU — contributing to the ongoing narrative and mythology of that cinematic universe.
The film features lead performances from Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, among others, anchoring a story that adapts characters first brought to life in Marvel Comics. Its source material gives the film a foundation rooted in decades of published storytelling, which Schreier and the creative team interpret through a cinematic lens.
With an audience rating of 7.5, Thunderbolts* is generally praised as a strong entry in the superhero genre — its strengths in storytelling, performance, and production design regularly cited by viewers.
What happens in Thunderbolts* (2025)? — Full Plot
We open with Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) — Black Widow's adopted sister from Black Widow (2021) — operating as a mercenary. She has been doing dirty work for the U.S. government since her sister's death.
Yelena is recruited by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) — the corrupt CIA-adjacent intelligence officer — for what she's told will be a 'simple cleanup.' The cleanup turns out to be the simultaneous mass-assassination of all members of her team — Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), John Walker / U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), Antonia Dreykov / Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), and Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen).
The team realizes they have been set up for mutual elimination. They escape Valentina's facility together — uneasy allies against a common enemy. The group is rounded out by Yelena's father Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian (David Harbour).
The team uncovers Valentina's larger conspiracy: she has been operating a black-market program selling enhanced-soldier technology to foreign governments. The technology comes from a captured Sentry — a cosmic-powered super-soldier with godlike abilities.
Sentry (Bob Reynolds, played by Lewis Pullman) — a manipulated, drug-dependent enhanced soldier — emerges as the film's primary antagonist. His powers exceed those of the team combined. He has been hunting them under Valentina's manipulation.
The team confronts Sentry and Valentina. The final battle features extensive combat between the morally-grey team and Sentry's overwhelming power. The team defeats Valentina through tactical strategy and Sentry's eventual rejection of his manipulation.
The film closes with the team formally accepting their identity as 'the Thunderbolts' — Valentina having forced them into the public role she had been engineering. The asterisk reveal: the team will, in Avengers: Doomsday (December 2026), formally become the New Avengers. Thunderbolts* grossed approximately $350 million globally.
Who stars in Thunderbolts* (2025)?
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What are some facts about Thunderbolts* (2025)?
Thunderbolts* released in 2025, placing it within the 2020s era of comic book cinema — a decade that saw superhero films become the dominant force at the global box office.
Directed by Jake Schreier, the film was produced by Marvel Studios and adapts source material from Marvel Comics.
The principal cast features Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan, with key supporting roles played by Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Lewis Pullman, David Harbour.
The film belongs to MCU — the Marvel Cinematic Universe — the highest-grossing film franchise of all time.
Thunderbolts* carries an audience rating of 7.5 — putting it in the solid-to-excellent tier of the genre.
The Marvel Comics source material for Thunderbolts* has been in continuous publication for decades, giving filmmakers a rich well of storylines, character arcs, and iconography to draw upon.
Modern superhero films like this one use a mix of practical effects and digital VFX, with entire sequences often shot against volume walls or LED stages pioneered by shows like The Mandalorian.
Thunderbolts* is catalogued on Movies on Comics among our collection of 162 comic book films spanning 48 years of cinema — from Richard Donner's 1978 Superman to the present day.
