Thunderbolts* is the latest superhero film in theaters, based on the Marvel Comics antihero team of the same name. After being released on May 2, 2025, this ensemble film key highlights are the great character-driven story and action set pieces.

The story picks up with Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), an ex-Black Widow assassin, leaping off a Malaysian skyscraper to infiltrate the laboratory of O.X.E. Group, on contract to destroy their remaining research. Once there, she battles through a swarm of security personnel, only to be stopped by a biometric door scanner. The last scientist warned Yelena about Project Sentry’s devastating implications and that it cannot fall into the hands of her employer. She then is prompted to plant explosives in the building after the scientist accidentally gets himself killed while fighting her.

Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) attends the impeachment hearing against her position as the current CIA director. After she denies all claims of illegal activity through O.X.E. Group, a skeptical Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), convinces her secretary to aid him in building a case against her. While chauffeuring Valentina in his limousine, Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour) overhears her final measures to clear any connections by sending all her shadow operatives to die, which includes his daughter Yelena.

Yelena arrives in O.X.E.’s Vault to be confronted by Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko). Each ordered to kill one another, they exchange blows and gunshots. By mistake, Walker opens an electronically sealed crate during the brawl, discovering a civilian named Bob (Lewis Pullman). Yelena soon comes to the realization that Valentina tricked them all into meeting their demise.

Yelena, Ghost, Walker, and Bob work together to escape right before the room is fully incinerated. Valentina catches wind of their survival, along with discovering that Bob was the only successful candidate of Project Sentry — a program to create new superhumans. She immediately orders a military unit to be mobilized at the Vault’s entrance, however the four of them slip past unnoticed by wearing combat uniforms. After commandeering a truck, an inspection officer holds them up at a checkpoint. Without a way out of the situation, Bob runs out and fires an assault rifle into the sky to cause a distraction. He is gunned down by the soldiers, yet he stands back up as if nothing happened moments after.

The most captivating aspect of this film is the internal struggles the characters themselves face throughout the runtime. Yelena Belova is initially stuck feeling aimless in life, caused by constantly doing contract jobs and becoming distant with her last remaining relative. After becoming well acquainted with the others, she learns that everyone else isn’t doing as well as initially thought. Following his questionable actions while bearing the ‘Captain America’ mantle, John Walker faced scrutiny which later affected his home life. Bob’s rough upbringing contributes to the instability of his powers earned from Project Sentry, which later throws the entire city of New York into a crisis.

Being a superhero movie, it has a fair share of action and good villain to keep us hooked. The Malaysian Skyscraper and O.X.E. Vault fight scenes were both well-choreographed and had good camera work to keep us in the flow. Even the entire team dynamics worked well, all things considered, as you’d never have expected this cast of characters to work so well together. It was also interesting to find out that the “Thunderbolts” moniker originated from Walker jokingly referencing Yelena’s childhood soccer team. Keep in mind of the asterisk in the title, as it may signify a future change. Watching them save civilians from falling rubble and ongoing destruction was something unexpected yet necessary — as of recently the superhero genre has been lacking this. Julia Louis-Dreyfus did a great job as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, always presenting herself on a morally higher ground and proving to be quite the nuisance all throughout.

If you’re looking for a solid superhero film with good action and memorable characters, make sure to check Thunderbolts* in theaters!