The press tour for Marvel's Thunderbolts is beginning to ramp up, and the full cast recently sat down with Fandango to discuss a number of topics, including the intense stuntwork performed by Florence Pugh.
Not to be outdone, David Harbour also elaborated on the demanding physical training he underwent to portray Red Guardian.
Said Pugh, "I got on all the emails, becuase it was in the script, and slowly as we got closer to shooting they were like, 'Yeah, I don't think this is going to happen.It's goint to be a crazy insurance ordeal. And obviously, we're not goint to throw FP off the second-tallest building in the world.'"
"And I was like WTF, of course we are. We have to do that. So I was being a sassy Karen, emailing Kevin [Feige], saying 'Kevin, this is going to do wonders for the press tour. We have to do this."
Thunderbolts* is an upcoming Phase 5 MCU film that is set for release on May 2, 2025. The film is currently slated to close out Phase 5 of the MCU.
Jake Schreier directs from a script written by Eric Pearson, Lee Sung Jin, and Joanna Calo.
The film stars Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, David Harbour as Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian, Hannah John-Kamen as Ava Starr / Ghost, Wyatt Russell as John Walker / U.S. Agent, Olga Kurylenko as Antonia Dreykov / Taskmaster, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Lewis Pullman has also been cast as The Sentry.
Principal photography began on February 26, 2024, and recently wrapped in June.
The film is inspired by the Marvel Comics title of the same name, where the Masters of Evil disguised themselves as The Avengers after the apparent death of the team after the Onslaught saga. Led by Baron Zemo, the group surmised that by filling the vacuum of superpowered champions, they could gain access to all the secrets of The Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D.
Later incarnations of the team would typically consist of U.S.-controlled supervillains who attempt to earn redemption and/or pardons by executing covert missions.
About Thunderbolts
In Thunderbolts*, Marvel Studios assembles an unconventional team of antiheroes — Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster and John Walker. After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap set by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, these disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts. Will this dysfunctional group tear themselves apart, or find redemption and unite as something much more before it’s too late?