THUNDERBOLTS* Finally Reveals Val's Backstory And What She's Been Up To In The MCU - SPOILERS

THUNDERBOLTS* Finally Reveals Val's Backstory And What She's Been Up To In The MCU - SPOILERS

Valentina Allegra de Fontaine has proven to be one of the MCU’s most mysterious new additions during the Multiverse Saga, but Thunderbolts* finally explains her motivations and reveals more about her past.

By JoshWilding - May 01, 2025 04:05 PM EST
Filed Under: Thunderbolts

We first met Valentina Allegra de Fontaine in Black Widow's post-credits scene when she tasked Yelena Belova with taking out Hawkeye. Val had been hired by Eleanor Bishop and told Yelena that the Avenger was responsible for killing her sister, Natasha Romanoff.

She later returned in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, transforming disgraced Captain America, John Walker, into her U.S. Agent. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever eventually revealed that the enigmatic character was Everett Ross' ex-wife and the current director of the CIA.

In that movie, we also learned of her desire to acquire Vibranium from Wakanda by any means necessary. 

Still, we had no idea what she was really up to or what, if anything, her introduction was leading to. It initially looked like she might be assembling a team Nick Fury-style, but Thunderbolts* finally clears things up. 

Before being appointed CIA Director, Val was in charge of O.X.E., a company looking to create its own immensely powerful superhero. She supposedly stood down after gaining a Government position but is now being impeached for some alleged shady actions from those past dealing. As a result, Val moves to destroy all evidence of her misdeeds, sending Yelena Belova, Ghost, U.S. Agent, and Taskmaster to an old O.X.E. base, hoping they will take each other out and tie up any final loose ends.

While there, Yelena discovers Val's plans to create The Sentry, a Golden Guardian with the powers of a million exploding suns. She's planned out everything from his hair, to the hero's costume and logo, but the experiments all failed...until Bob. 

Taskmaster dies, but the rest of the Thunderbolts team up with Bucky Barnes and Red Guardian to take Val down after she retrieves Bob. In the meantime, she manages to convince the former meth addict to become her Sentry, but he's unhinged and his inner turmoil created a darker half that makes people revisit their worst moments when they touch him.

In Val's case, she returns to a moment from her childhood; her father made her swear not to tell anyone where they were, but she let it slip while in town. Shortly after, the man she spoke to guns him down in front of her before seemingly taking the young Val and training the child to become the woman we see today. 

This adds a layer of sympathy to her backstory, so when she avoids being arrested by the Thunderbolts and announces them to the world as the New Avengers, it's hard not to root for her (even after her experiments killed a whole lot of people). However, as Yelena points out, they own her now, likely explaining why Avengers Tower becomes the team's base. It had originally been purchased by O.X.E., but was abandoned when the Sentry program seemingly failed.

So, yes, this whole time, Val was simply looking to create a Superman-like being she could control as part of her quest for power. While that's not the most complex motivation, she's a fun antagonist we'll no doubt see more of down the line. One or two more cameos might have benefited the character, though this story works as a potential conclusion to her arc as well. 

What did you think about Thunderbolts*'s take on Val?

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?

The cast of Thunderbolts* will be led by Florence Pugh as Yelena Boleva, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, and Lewis Pullman as "Bob."

Written by Eric Pearson, Lee Sung Jin, and Joanna Calo, and directed by Jake Schreier, Thunderbolts* is now playing in theaters.

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Sinner
Sinner - 5/1/2025, 4:27 PM
This woman has audacity, that’s for sure. But that stunt she pulled at the end… well played.
Latverian
Latverian - 5/1/2025, 4:29 PM
Just saw the movie.

Solid 8/10.

Pullman is an excellent Bob, and Pugh is the easy stand-out.

My only gripe is Mel (annoying at times) and the fact that this movie starring 2 heroes and 1 villain from Black Widow, just as many from Falcon & Winter Soldier, and a villain turned hero from the 2nd Ant-Man movie, came out at the end of Phase V, when in reality it should have, oh I don' know, THREE YEARS AND SEVEN MOVIES AGO?! JESUS CHRIST, KEV, YOU USED TO BE GOOD AT THIS SHIT! WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU PEOPLE? YOU ENDED PHASE IV WITH A CHAD (rip) TRIBUTE AND NOT AN ACTUAL CLIMACTIC EVENT? GOD!

Anyway, 8/10, will watch again.
ProfessorWhy
ProfessorWhy - 5/1/2025, 4:42 PM
@Latverian - Mel?
Latverian
Latverian - 5/1/2025, 4:44 PM
@ProfessorWhy - Val's assistant.
thedrudo
thedrudo - 5/1/2025, 5:53 PM
@Latverian - Mel is a babe. Leave her alone.
Latverian
Latverian - 5/1/2025, 5:54 PM
@thedrudo - She's cute, but her dialogue is poorly written.
Polaris
Polaris - 5/1/2025, 6:03 PM
@Latverian - Yeah, Mel was meh. And I didn't care about Valentina either, except for the ending, which was good.

I agree that this movie should have come out sooner and the team should have had cameos from then on, like proper (government sponsored) Avengers.
Gambito
Gambito - 5/1/2025, 4:41 PM
MARVEL REFUSES TO PAY JEREMY RENNER THE SAME SALARY FOR HAWKEYE SEASON 2, THEY OFFERED HALF THE AMOUNT EVEN THOUGH HE WOULD HAVE WAY MORE TROUBLE FILMING IT NOW AND THAT HE WAS PLAYED THE ROLE FOR MORE THAN A DECADE
ProfessorWhy
ProfessorWhy - 5/1/2025, 4:43 PM
@Gambito - your capslock is on
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 5/1/2025, 5:11 PM
Cool!!.

It’s crazy to think this is the characters 4th appearance already considering she was introduced post EG which is a rarity for many new characters I feel…

However I don’t think her goal overall was to create a her own superhero or team but just to acquire as much power as possible for own ends , whatever they may be given she’s still a relatively enigmatic character even if we get a snippet of her backstory in this.

Let’s remember she wanted to go after Wakanda to get Vibranium and also acquired the services of Walker & Yelena which plays into this film so she likely wanted to get as many resources as she could and still does by having her hands in many pies so to speak.

Anyway , I have enjoyed Julia’s performance aswell as the character of Valentina in the MCU thus far so I’m intrigued to see where she goes & what happens with her in the future!!.

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thedrudo
thedrudo - 5/1/2025, 5:53 PM
My main man Lewis Pullman crushing it as expected.

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