The MCU’s most powerful hero is hiding in plain sight thunderbolts*. Marvel Studios recently unveiled its first teaser trailer for the upcoming thunderbolts*Take a closer look at the secret team-up movie. It reveals the titular team in various states of mental disrepair in the wake of their last MCU appearances, with their paths crossing violently at first. The presumably early scene pits several anti-heroes and reformed villains against one another before Valentina Allegra De Fontaine, who has assumed control of Avengers Tower, rallies them together.
From the teaser and other promotional material, including the newly released poster, it’s clear to see that the team’s relationship will be rocky at first. Bucky Barnes, who became a congressman since his last appearance in The Falcon and the Winter Soldieris seen violently pursuing members of the Thunderbolts-to-be during a four-way brawl between Ghost, Taskmaster, U.S. it. agent, and Yelena Bellow’s Black Widow breaks out in their first meeting before they become convinced that a secret figure wants them “gone.” It is during this scene that a new character emerges – and his arrival changes everything.
“Bob” is actually Sentry, one of Marvel’s most powerful heroes
Bob is most likely Robert Reynolds from Marvel Comics
The thunderbolts* Teaser finally delivered the first look at Lewis Pullman’s “Bob,” a character long speculated to be an adaptation of Marvel Comics’ Robert Reynolds. Much like a scratch, aside from the bullet holes that pepper his clothing. With all this evidence, the teaser seems to confirm that Bob is, in fact, Sentry – One of Marvel Comics’ most powerful characters and his answer to DC’s Superman.
It has been five years since the original Avengers first assembled and six by this time thunderbolts* Releases on May 2, 2025. Since then, the only team-up movies to talk about have been Spider-Man: No Way Home And The MarvelsWith both starring teams of just three similarly-powered superheroes. thunderbolts* Will therefore be the closest the MCU has come to debuting a replacement team in the multiverse saga, although the power levels of its members are practically incomparable to the flagship team of the MCU. Sentry’s involvement, however, drastically changes things.
How the Sentry’s powers compare to the Avengers
Earth has a new mightiest hero
Earth’s Mightiest Heroes truly lived up to their name during their earliest outings, with their combined power being second to none in the MCU. The most powerful members of the Avengers are arguably Thor and Hulk – although Iron Man still gave the latter a run for his money – while Black Widow and Hawkeye are practically auxiliary members, to put it harshly. Nevertheless, the fact that the Thunderbolts comprise three super-soldier relatives to Captain America, two super-assassin relatives to Natasha Romanoff, and one member with completely original quantum phasing abilities makes them a subdued imitation of the original team.
Thunderbolts member |
Major powers |
---|---|
Yelena Belova / Black Widow |
super killer |
Bucky Barnes / White Wolf / Winter Soldier |
Super soldier |
Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian |
Super soldier |
John Walker/U.S. it. Agent |
Super soldier |
Antonia Drykov / Taskmasker |
Super-assassin and perfect mimicry |
Ava Starr / Ghost |
Quantum phasing |
Sentry’s power levels, meanwhile, are godly. Although this is arguably counterbalanced by Thor’s actual godhood – which is more accurately alien physiology – Marvel Comics has seen Sentry lay waste to Asgard one-handedly and tear another”God“Ares, in half with his bare hands. His comic book battles with the Hulk, meanwhile, ended with no clear winner. Suffice it to say, Sentry’s involvement in a movie that features a significantly less powerful team of Avengers lookalikes is particularly glaring and significantly contradicts the tone that the Thunderbolts would otherwise strike.
Marvel’s Sentry means that Thunderbolts aren’t quite as grounded as they seem
Sentry brings cosmic themes to an otherwise earthly movie
The thunderbolts* Teaser makes it look like the MCU’s next answer to Captain America: The Winter SoldierA movie that remains a firm favorite for its grounded tones (among many other reasons). The Thunderbolts’ more muted power sets are conducive to this atmosphere, paving the way for some visceral action sequences instead of sci-fi-heavy airborne fights complete with photon blasts and lightning. Sentry quite literally flies in the face of this with his power setWhich includes such things as flight, superhuman physiology, near-invulnerability, teleportation, energy manipulation, and molecular manipulation on par with Molecule Man.
Marvel Studios may be marketing thunderbolts* Like a more cerebral take on the team-up formula, but the mere presence of Sentry runs counter to that idea. Sentry is a cosmic hero equal to Captain Marvel, only much more powerful. Sentry is obviously an outlier thunderbolts*Making it more clear that he will instead embody the role of the insurmountable challenge that the titular team will have to face despite the painfully obvious gulf in their powers – which is an incredibly exciting prospect.
Marvel’s Thunderbolts * is a superhero movie based on the comic team of the same name. The movie acts as part of the MCU’s fifth phase of films. The film sees the likes of Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, Wyatt Russell, the Red Guardian, and more as an unlikely group of heroes and villains come together to fight for good.
- Director
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Jake Schrier
- Release date
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May 2, 2025
- studio(s)
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Marvel Studios
- Writers
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Lee Sung-jin, Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo