Posted in: Marvel Studios, Movies | Tagged: florench pugh, thunderbolts
Thunderbolts*: Yelena Is "A Completely Different Person"
Florence Pugh says that Yelena is a "completely different person" in Thunderbolts* because "she's coming out of a few years of quite traumatic events."
Article Summary
- Florence Pugh reveals Yelena's transformation due to major life changes in Thunderbolts*.
- Thunderbolts* offers more screen time to underutilized Marvel characters in a new light.
- Wyatt Russell discuss improvements in his character's costume design.
- The film promises an exciting antihero ensemble, releasing May 2, 2025.
Now that Captain America: Brave New World is right around the corner, we're starting to learn more about Thunderbolts*. We got a new trailer during the Super Bowl and now some more previews and interviews are starting to drop that are giving us a better idea of what kind of movie we're in for. This movie is walking a different line from other films where it is taking characters [aside from Bucky] who have made sometimes multiple appearances but haven't had a ton of screentime and giving them the spotlight. So we're going to be learning more about these people as they are put in new situation.
Yelena went through the wringer in Black Widow and we found out in Hawkeye that she was part of the Snap and finding out that she lost Natasha again was traumatic to say the least. Florence Pugh spoke to Empire and explained, "She's a completely different person to the person that you'd assume she would be. She's coming out of a few years of quite traumatic events. Where does that leave a person?" We're guessing as a bit of a mess.
There are some things from comic books that don't translate as well to live-action and it might be time to accept that. In this case, it feels like half of the helmets we see people wearing look awkward or weird as hell and double so if they are a cowel where we can see half of their face. Anthony Mackie was so displeased by his look in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier that he insisted on a change for the new movie and he wasnn't the only one unhappy with their look from that show.
Wyatt Russell also revealed that he wasn't exactly thrilled with the his look in the show, saying, "I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I looked very cool." Things are different because in Thunderbolts* "they made my helmet not look like the end of a penis." That's certainly an improvement. In general, Wyatt thinks the entire team looks "fucking cool." Just make sure you all nail that superhero landing, that's half the job.
- Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2025 MARVEL.
- (L-R): Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), and John Walker (Wyatt Russell) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 MARVEL.
- (L-R) Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), and Red Guardian/Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 MARVEL.
- Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) in Marvel Studios' THUNDERBOLTS*. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2024 MARVEL.
Thunderbolts*: Summary, Cast List, Release Date
In Thunderbolts*, Marvel Studios assembles an unconventional team of antiheroes — Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster and John Walker. After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap set by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, these disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts. Will this dysfunctional group tear themselves apart or find redemption and unite as something much more before it's too late?
Returning to their Marvel Cinematic Universe roles are Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Hannah John-Kamen, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The cast also includes newcomers to the MCU—Lewis Pullman, Geraldine Viswanathan, Chris Bauer, and Wendell Edward Pierce.
Jake Schreier directs Thunderbolts* with Kevin Feige producing. Louis D'Esposito, Brian Chapek, and Jason Tamez serve as executive producers.
Marvel Studios' Thunderbolts* opens in U.S. theaters on May 2, 2025.
