Mary Gilmore, Staff Writer
When it comes to new Marvel films being produced, Thunderbolts has been highly anticipated since it was first announced during the D23 expo in 2022. The cast includes seven main characters known as the Thunderbolts: Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova), Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes), David Harbour (The Red Guardian), Wyatt Russell (U.S. Agent), Olga Kurylenko (Taskmaster), Hannah John-Kamen (Ghost), and Lewis Pullman (Sentry).
Yelena Belova first appeared in the film Black Widow where she was introduced as Natasha Romanoff’s (also known as Black Widow) sister. They were paired together in their early years of the black widow program, assigned to act as a family with fake mother Melina Vostokoff and fake father Alexei Shostakov, also known as the Red Guardian. She was found by Natasha in the Black Widow film and they worked together with Alexei and Melina to take down the program. Unfortunately, Natasha died in Avengers: Endgame, leaving Yelena without her sister. For revenge, Yelena attempted to kill Clint Barton, Natasha’s best friend, who she believed killed her sister.
Taskmaster was also an important character in the Black Widow film. Natasha believed she had killed the head of the program as well as his daughter, Antonia Dreykov, in her past. However, during the film she was attacked by a skilled killer, who was known as the Taskmaster. It was revealed that she was Antonia Dreykov, and was saved by Yelena and Natasha by the end of the film.
Bucky Barnes has an extensive history with the MCU. He began in Captain America: The First Avenger as Steve Rogers’ best friend. In the film, he was thought to be dead during a mission involving a train. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes returns as the Winter Soldier. He was frozen in ice, similar to Steve Rogers, and is unfrozen whenever he is needed by the Russians for a mission. The Russians used mind control to get Bucky to kill their enemies. Rogers helped to undo this mind control by giving Bucky to the Wakandans in Captain America: Civil War. Rogers died of old age in Avengers: Endgame, leaving Bucky alone in the modern world. Barnes paired with Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, in Captain America and the Winter Soldier.
U.S. Agent was prominent in Captain America and the Winter Soldier. John Walker, aka U.S. Agent, was given Captain America’s shield after Sam gave it to a museum. Walker took illegal super soldier serum and ended up beating a man to death with the shield in front of the world. Wilson took his shield back and Walker was left with his life ruined due to his own actions.
Ghost, also known as Ava Starr, was the main villain of Ant Man and the Wasp. Ava could phase in and out of matter and was suffering tremendously due to an explosion of a quantum generator that killed her parents. Ava was slowly dying due to a lack of quantum energy in her body. Ava was trying to steal the quantum energy from Hank Pym’s wife who was lost in the quantum realm, but after a huge fight scene, his wife came back and was able to heal her.
Sentry is the only character who has not been seen in the Marvel universe thus far, so his back story is unknown.
Most of the characters listed were approached at the end of their last show or movie by a woman named Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus. It seems as though she will bring the team together and provide them with missions.
Thunderbolts* comes to theaters on May 2.
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