The Walking Dead alum Steven Yeun dropped out of Marvel Studios' Thunderbolts movie due to a scheduling conflict late last year, and another original cast member has now joined him, reportedly for the same reason.
According to Deadline, Emmy award-winning The Bear star Ayo Edebiri has also been forced to part ways with the superhero/villain team-up movie, with Blockers breakout Geraldine Viswanathan stepping in to replace her.
Edebiri's character still hasn't been officially named, but we have heard that she will be introduced as Allegra de Fontaine's assistant, Erin, who is said to be "exceptional at her job, even surprising Val with how good she is at getting things done."
Insiders believe there will be more to the role, however.
Viswanathan was last seen in the Apple feature The Beanie Bubble, and has a role in Ethan Coen’s Focus Features title Drive-Away Dolls. She will also star alongside Reese Witherspoon and Will Ferrell in Amazon comedy You’re Cordially Invited.
The trade has also confirmed recent reports that Lewis Pullman has signed on to take over from Yeun as the Sentry.
Pullman most recently appeared in Top Gun: Maverick, and has previously had supporting roles in Bad Times at the El Royale, The Strangers: Prey at Night, and Lessons in Chemistry. He will also play the lead in the long-delayed re-adaptation of Stephen King's Salem's Lot.
Shooting is currently scheduled to begin in March, and casting is also underway for "a high-tech militia group that the Thunderbolts are going to fight in the film."
Though other characters might well be added, the Thunderbolts roster currently consists of Red Guardian (David Harbour), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko).
Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julie Louis Dreyfus) will put the team together, and rumor has it that she may also be partially responsible for Sentry's creation.
Harrison Ford will replace the late William Hurt as Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, who may wind up transforming into the Red Hulk. Black Widow's Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz) and Bill Foster (Laurence Fishburne) from Ant-Man and the Wasp are also rumored to appear.
Jake Schreier (Robot and Frank, Dave) is set to direct, with Black Widow scribe Eric Pearson penning the script.
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