Thunderbolts* is now the MCU's next movie, after Captain America: Brave New World arrived in February this year. Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes heads up the ragtag team-up film and we've got all the answers available on what's going on with it, including why that asterisk is in the title.
Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova joins Bucky in the last movie of Marvel Phase 5, as they both try to navigate teaming up with Wyatt Russell's US Agent (from Falcon and the Winter Soldier), David Harbour's Red Guardian, and several more antiheroes and villains. They're all overseen by Julia Louis-Dreyfus' Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, who's been gradually pulling them together as the franchise's next Nick Fury.
The Thunderbolts* trailer from the Super Bowl promised some of the most entertaining MCU action since Guardians of the Galaxy and Deadpool and Wolverine. Stan even compared it to '80s teen classic The Breakfast Club.
To see what's coming, check out the Thunderbolts* release date, confirmed cast, plot, footage, and more below before Valentina finds out. Once you're up to date, give our upcoming Marvel movies rundown a look too, for what else you can look forward to.
Thunderbolts* release date
Thunderbolts* will be released in theaters this May 2, 2025. It's the last film of Marvel Phase 5, arriving before The Fantastic Four kicks off Marvel Phase 6. Jake Schreier directs.
It's also been delayed a fair few times, with an original release date of July 2024. That means it's landing almost a full year later than planned. Still, we can't complain. At least we have a release date that now looks pretty set in stone, unlike some other recent Marvel movie announcements (looking at you, Blade).
Thunderbolts* cast
The Thunderbolts* cast features some major returning faces, and most of them are big-time stars.
While we are still waiting to see if we'll be getting any surprise casting news and new characters, we have listed all the full and confirmed Thunderbolts* cast for you below:
- Florence Pugh – Yelena Belova
- Sebastian Stan – Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier
- David Harbour – Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian
- Wyatt Russell – John Walker/US Agent
- Hannah John-Kamen – Ava Starr/Ghost
- Olga Kurylenko – Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster
- Lewis Pullman – Bob/Sentry (rumored)
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
- Geraldine Viswanathan – Mel
Thunderbolts* trailer
A new Thunderbolts* trailer was released at the 2025 Super Bowl (you can watch it above), and it's the most action-packed yet. In the clip, Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine tells a courtroom that the Avengers "aren't coming", so it's the Thunderbolts who will have to save the world. There's plenty of ass-kicking action, explosions, and car flips, which gives us an idea of what to expect from the upcoming movie.
Previously, we saw a Thunderbolts* special look trailer (which you can watch below) on November 9, 2024, released during Disney's D23 Brazil event. The teaser is on the longer side, running for over three minutes and 40 seconds, so buckle in if you plan on watching for yourself.
If you aren't fussed about watching the clip above, though, here's our summary: it shows the team at first coming to blows and then ultimately teaming up together under Valentina's direction – along with newcomer Bob, who may or may not be Sentry. Bucky also seems to be keeping an eye on Valentina, and, at one point, he attacks the Thunderbolts*. Yelena, meanwhile, is searching for purpose. Oh and there is also a car chase featuring some jokes that lasts for about a minute as well.
Thunderbolts* plot
Not a whole lot is known about the Thunderbolts* plot just yet. Obviously, we know it'll see a band of misfits teaming up. Beyond that, though, it's a mystery.
Judging by the trailers, it looks like each of the Thunderbolts is searching for purpose, and of course, the mystery of Lewis Pullman's Bob and his true identity will likely make up a decent chunk of the plot. The Thunderbolts* also look to be going up against those "worse guys" Valentina is talking about in some of the footage.
Meanwhile, it's been revealed that Valentina now owns Avengers Tower, renaming it the Watchtower. To what end would someone who's sent several members of this team to kill others want such a structure? It seems a bit conspicuous for black ops, but maybe that's the point.
Nobody's giving anything away for the time being. We'll keep you updated as more details and story rumors head our way.
What does the asterisk mean in Thunderbolts*?
We don't yet know why Thunderbolts* has an asterisk in the title, but it's there for a reason. "We won't talk anymore about that until after the movie comes out," Kevin Feige teased at CinemaCon 2024. However, we've got some clues about the asterisk so far.
Timed to the latest trailer drop during the 2025 Super Bowl, Marvel Japan shared a new Thunderbolts* poster on social media (you can see it below) where we finally get a meaning behind the asterisk: "*The Avengers are not available". It seems to be a funny way to say that this new group is a downgrade from the Avengers, but they're still the only option available.
Previous footage teased a potential name change, with the asterisk then probably indicating that Thunderbolts is a temporary name. When Red Guardian screams passionately in one of the trailers, "we are the Thunderbolts!", Bucky shakes his head and says: "We can't call ourselves that."
An asterisk then appears on the film's title card after the exchange, suggesting a change could be coming before the film's May 2, 2025 release date. Marvel isn't afraid to change the titles of its movies or shows, so this isn't a ridiculous guess at all. However, only time will tell us if our hunch is correct or not.
That's a wrap on Thunderbolts*. For more, see our guides on watching the Marvel movies in order and the Marvel timeline.
