Marvel Cinematic Universe director Jake Schreier opens up about how Thunderbolts* connects with Avengers: Doomsday. While The Multiverse Saga has been planting the seeds for the Thunderbolts team since Phase 4, 2025 is finally bringing it full circle as their film is set to wrap up Phase 5 for Marvel Studios, before Phase 6 launches this summer. However, the Thunderbolts* movie is only the beginning for the group, as Marvel has already announced several actors will return next year in Avengers: Doomsday.
In a new interview with SFX Magazine (via CinemaBlend), the Thunderbolts* director was asked if his film paves the way for Avengers: Doomsday, given that several cast members are set to return for the big team-up movie in 2026. Without spoiling too much, Schreier stressed that there may be some foundation in Thunderbolts* that naturally leads into Avengers: Doomsday, stating the following:
There might be some stones, or pebbles [smiles]. I don’t know how you want to rate your rocks. Look, you know the character that we’re talking about, and you know that there’s a level of power involved there that could have an impact going forward. I’m not making Doomsday so I’m not privy to that.
In the interview, the director’s comment, “there’s at least one character who will be relevant in Doctor Doom’s big plot,” raises a lot of questions about which of the returning Thunderbolts* characters may be factored into Victor von Doom’s master plan. Even though Schreier doesn’t mention the character’s identity, it wouldn’t come as a shock if Sentry is the one who may be relevant to Doctor Doom in the Avengers: Doomsday story. As powerful as Doctor Doom is, it’s obvious that he will have an army of his own in one way or another.
Even though the Thunderbolts* story is about this team going up against Sentry, he is obviously not going to stay defeated for long. There has to be a story reason for why Sentry is still around after Thunderbolts*, thus Lewis Pullman’s inclusion in the cast of Avengers: Doomsday. It would make perfect sense if Victor, at some point during Avengers: Doomsday, were to recruit Sentry, especially with him about to become one of the most powerful characters in the MCU. That would give the Avengers another major obstacle to deal with.
As cryptic as Schreier is about the connections between Thunderbolts* and Avengers: Doomsday, it’s very likely fans will get at least some of those answers next month when the Phase 5 finale is released. Given that Avengers: Doomsday is officially in production, more clues are bound to emerge about how the Thunderbolts* actors fit into the Phase 6 installment. But before then, Thunderbolts* releases in theaters starting in May.
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Source: SFX Magazine (via CinemaBlend)
