Thunderbolts*
Film · 2025 · 127 minutes · Phase Five
CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine sends Yelena Belova, John Walker, Ava Starr (Ghost), and Antonia Dreykov (Taskmaster) into what turns out to be a death trap meant to eliminate loose ends tied to her black-ops program. The group instead finds and frees an amnesiac superhuman named Bob, joins forces with Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian) and Bucky Barnes, and tries to survive Valentina's cover-up. Bob's unstable powers, born of the classified "Sentry" project, manifest a destructive alter ego called the Void, which engulfs New York City in a darkness that traps people in their worst memories. Rather than fighting Bob with force, Yelena and the others confront his trauma directly and talk him back from the Void by refusing to give up on him. In the aftermath, Valentina spins the group's actions into a public relations triumph, unveiling them to the world as the "New Avengers."
Follows on from
- Black Widowdirect-sequel — Yelena Belova, Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian), Antonia Dreykov (Taskmaster), and Valentina de Fontaine's black-ops recruitment scheme all carry forward directly from Black Widow.
- The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: Season Onedirect-sequel — John Walker's transformation into the government-backed U.S. Agent under Valentina's patronage, and Bucky Barnes's ongoing arc, both continue from this series.
- Hawkeye: Season Onecameo-only · optional — Yelena's processing of Natasha Romanoff's death and her shifting sense of purpose continue threads developed in Hawkeye.
- Captain America: Brave New Worldcameo-only · optional — Bucky Barnes's status as a sitting U.S. congressman, referenced here, was established in Captain America: Brave New World.
Leads to
- Avengers: Doomsdaydirect-sequel — Set fourteen months after Thunderbolts*; Yelena, Bucky, Walker, Ghost, Red Guardian and Bob return as the New Avengers.