Thunderbolts* gathers a group of antiheroes from across the franchise to spearhead the latest blockbusting addition to Marvel’s voluminous filmography.

Having been snookered into a deadly trap by CIA boss Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), the outcasts are hungry to get their own back. Each grappling with demons and troubled pasts, a question is put forth: will this volatile collection of individuals implode, or can they achieve redemption by working together?

It’s the sort of conundrum - along with some stellar performances - that has Thunderbolts* generating buzz as Marvel’s strongest outing in the post-Endgame era.

“When this idea got sent to me, there was something that felt like a good fit,” says director Jake Schreier

“Having all of these incredible actors, you know, that was quite a draw. But also just it being not your traditional form of superhero movie, and it kind of endemically needing to be something different because of who the characters were felt like an interesting opportunity.”

“We had a lot of references,” he continues. “I put together this kind of reel of scenes from different movies; where people were thrown together and they couldn't necessarily trust each other, but they were going to have to trust each other to get out alive. That included Toy Story 3, but also Ronin, Reservoir Dogs, The Dirty Dozen and The Breakfast Club.

“They're all very different films, but they share a kind of DNA in certain moments - that tension and a lack of trust that I really wanted the movie to have.”

(L-R) Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian (David Harbour), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and John Walker (Wyatt Russell) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2025 MARVEL.

Thunderbolts* stands out from other Marvel films through its approach to action, taking inspiration from the Mission: Impossible series by staying grounded with clever uses of practical effects, well-choreographed stunts and one take scenes.

“What I love about Mission: Impossible 4, and why we kept returning to it, is that there's a really strong concept to every single one of the action sequences in that movie,” Schreier explains.

“There's an overall concept, which is that all of the traditional mission impossible gizmos that they usually have don't work. So that then informs every single one of those sequences.

“It becomes about the failings of that and the imperfections of that. Which is such a smart way to drive an action movie.

“So in designing the action for Thunderbolts*, we always started from what situation the characters are actually in, and what would be the right action sequence to express that, as opposed to starting from ‘What would be an awesome action sequence? And how do we fit this to the movie?’

“It really grounds you in character and in the narrative and where it's going, and those kinds of practical effects feel a little bit more human and internal while still exploring big psychological ideas."

Florence Pugh and Jake Schreier on the set of Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2025 MARVEL.

Also taking a leaf from M.I’s book is standout lead Florence Pugh, who plays Yelena Belova (Black Widow). The English actor channelled her inner Tom Cruise by shunning a stunt double and swan-diving off the world’s second tallest building, the Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur.

“I have never been more relieved in my life than when that actually happened - and happened safely,” Schreier admits. “I asked [Pugh], ‘How are you with heights?’ And she said, 'I love heights. What are we doing?’

“From that moment, she really had to take it on because it's not something any of us could ask her to do, but she wanted to do it so badly.

“We had to spend months talking to the Malaysian government. There were three different engineering firms that had to certify the platform on the roof just to make sure that it was safe.

“And more than anything, it all comes down to a really lovely moment of acting from Florence. That shot starts in a close-up where she has to introduce you to this character and to the emotional place that that character is in, before coming out and doing one of the most death-defying things that you can do.

“I never doubted that she would. She's so committed as an actress and so fearless.”

Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 MARVEL.

In addition to its rule-breaking crew of characters, the Thunderbolts* soundtrack also eschews Marvel stereotypes. Instead of combining a grand orchestral score with rock/pop needle-drops, Schreier enlisted Son Lux (who got an Oscar nod for their work on Everything, Everywhere, All At Once) to create a uniquely epic sonic accompaniment.

“What they were kind enough to do, and how I like to build music for movies, is they made a ton of the music for this film before we were done shooting it,” the director explains.

“So we had a whole suite of music that I could play at the table read for the actors. And I think we had maybe 40 sketches, all with stems, done before we ever went into the edit room.

“It gives it a quality of originality because it was never made as a reference to anything or as a copy of anything or trying to map something that had already been in place.

“I think music is such a huge part of it, especially in a movie like this, at this scale. We talked more about developing themes, like a feeling or a connection that they all share or a version of how a certain side of the movie feels.”

• Thunderbolts* is in cinemas now. Watch the trailer below.