For quite a while, Marvel fans have been clamoring for Sentry to make his MCU debut, as a Superman pastiche, the demand goes all the way back to when Warner Bros. was set to release Man of Steel in 2013.
Now over a decade later, Bob Reynolds is set to make his big screen debut in Thunderbolts as a wildcard member of the team, whose alter ego threatens to destroy the world.
Speaking on how he first felt when learning when he would be portraying the character, actor Lewis Pullman told Numéro, "Pretty intimidating honestly. Marvel has always occupied a space in my mind as this untouchable echelon of filmmaking. Because they are so good at capturing the magnitude of the universe it almost felt like I’d need a literal spaceship to even have access to a Marvel set."
Pullman further elaborated on the internal pressure he felt joining such a monumental franchise.
"So I was terrified of how I might fit into the rhythm of the world and tone. I felt a lot of responsibility to not be a weak link but also try to do my job and bring parts of myself and give worth to my own take on the character. "
When asked about the prep work that went into the role, Pullman shared, "It definitely was a significantly physically and mentally challenging experience, which I loved."
"I sort of tried to go about the prep with an athlete mentality. On a movie of this scale I figured we would be doing scenes many many times, so a lot of the training and character prep I did wasn’t necessarily what was going to be on display in the film but it was going to help me be more agile and have better stamina, physically and emotionally, when doing certain scenes over and over again and not losing steam. "
Pullman's comments offer a glimpse into the actor's dedication to honoring the character's rich history and the weight of expectation that comes with portraying such a significant figure in the Marvel universe.
Pullman is confirmed to be portraying the character in Avengers: Doomsday, so it will be interesting to see how the character fits into the zany adventure that involves universe incursions and (presumably) the merged alternate realities of Battleworld.
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/Void.
Principal photography began on February 26, 2024, 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?