Marvel Studios only brought one movie to the Super Bowl, but Thunderbolts* still stole the show at the Big Game (you can watch it here if you missed it) with a trailer that unleashed The Sentry and revealed more about what to come this May.
Captain America: Brave New World is only days away from arriving in theaters, but it feels like 2025 will be all about Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps. The latter recently dropped an impressive sneak and everything we've seen from this movie points to it being one of the Multiverse Saga's biggest surprises.
In this feature, we're taking a deep dive into the latest Thunderbolts* trailer to bring you a breakdown of all the biggest moments, reveals, potential plot spoilers, comic book references, and Easter Eggs. And yes, we're explaining what the deal is with The Sentry (a.k.a. "Bob").
To check them out, simply click on the "Next"/"View List" buttons below.
7. "The Avengers Are Not Coming"
The trailer begins with Valentina Allegra de Fontaine addressing the fact that "The Avengers are not coming." The team disbanded at the end of Avengers: Endgame and, even then, had largely gone their separate ways following Captain America: Civil War.
We know President Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross wants Sam Wilson to reassemble the team but, at this point in the MCU timeline, it appears that still hasn't happened.
We don't think Val is advocating for the Thunderbolts here, so perhaps she wants an army of Super Soldiers, starting with The Sentry? Bucky looks pretty concerned which, based on what happened in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, isn't overly surprising.
6. Into The Void (No, Not That One)
New York City is bathed in shadow, with a mysterious flying villain seemingly vanishing people away. This is, of course, The Sentry's darker half, The Void (which has no relation to "The Void" featured in Loki and Deadpool & Wolverine).
If what we see here is any indication, he's lost control and is pulling everyone into his nightmarish realm. The Thunderbolts are even shown approaching one of the shadows, suggesting they'll travel into the unknown to defeat "Bob."
The comics have never really established how or what The Void is beyond it being a dark entity that bonded to Robert Reynolds when he consumed the Super Soldier Serum that transformed him into The Sentry (many believe it's his mental illness in physical form). That version of The Void killed one million people in Manhattan before being defeated.
5. Bucky's Team
Thunderbolts*'s synopsis has confirmed that the team finds itself "ensnared in a death trap set by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine," though we don't think it's as simple as her wanting them dead. If anything, she's likely using them to bring "Bob" to her.
Something that becomes apparent as the trailer continues is that Bucky, concerned by whatever Val is planning, eventually recruits Yelena Belova, Red Guardian, U.S. Agent, and Ghost (we'll get to Taskmaster) to help him stop whatever it is she's up to.
Making this Bucky's team is an interesting move on Marvel Studios' part and, assuming he survives this run-in with The Sentry, chances are he and Yelena will lead this group of New Avengers.
4. The Sentry
In the comics, Robert Reynolds was a thief and drug addict who stumbled across an incredibly potent version of the Super Soldier Serum while robbing a laboratory. Upon ingesting it, he gained the powers of a million exploding suns, becoming a superhero in the process.
We'd bet on the MCU's "Bob" being one of many people Val has experimented on in a quest to win the Super Soldier arms race. Having the world's most powerful hero on hand will certainly cement her position of power, though it'll likely all go wrong when her greatest creation starts laying waste to the Big Apple.
There's a glimpse of the comic-accurate yellow costume in this trailer, though things look bleak for Red Guardian. Interestingly, Bob's voice sounds distorted during these scenes; if the rumours are true that Val is working with Mephisto, could there be a demonic element at play?
3. Taskmaster Is So Dead
We're sure it hasn't escaped you that Olga Kurylenko's Taskmaster doesn't appear beyond her scenes in the bunker...a location which is eventually consumed in fire (it's likely where Bob is being kept, with these characters sent on separate missions to bring him to Val).
Taskmaster clearly doesn't live beyond this part of Thunderbolts*. She's absent from what looks to be the final battle and, even if Antonia Dreykov doesn't die here, common sense says her days are numbered.
Honestly, if Marvel Studios needed a character with some familiarity to kill off - even if it's just to establish The Sentry as a legitimate threat - then one most fans don't care about is fine. Heck, it could even lead to us getting a comic-accurate Taskmaster down the line.
2. Avengers Tower's New Look
Val is the new owner of Avengers Tower and rumour has it this is where O.X.E., a shadowy organisation run by Val in the comics, will be based. Whether that means she's given up being C.I.A. Director or this is some sort of offshoot remains to be seen.
Either way, we've heard she's up to no good there and there's something twisted about the former base of Earth's Mightiest Heroes being corrupted like this. Scoopers have claimed Mephisto is the skyscraper's true owner, so perhaps Ironheart will expand on what we see here.
Regardless of what Marvel Studios may or may not be building to, the black additions to the building are almost certainly a nod to The Sentry's base, "The Watchtower." Whether it will come into play here remains to be seen, as does whether "Bob" has a future beyond this movie.
1. "The Thunderbolts"
The team gets its name in this trailer, though only Red Guardian appears to be on board with them being called the "Thunderbolts." Much has been said about that mysterious asterisk, with the prevailing theory Bucky and company will eventually be dubbed the "New Avengers" instead.
Honestly, we'd much prefer they embrace and keep this identity. It makes them stand apart as a team, though this movie could just as easily be the story of them earning their place in the MCU as "Avengers."
Val doesn't appear to have much faith in them and, while she likely uses them to find "Bob," we believe them assembling as the Thunderbolts is the last thing she wants to happen. We're particularly curious whether part of the reason they hate the name is President "Thunderbolt" Ross' recent transformation into a rampaging Red Hulk...