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The first reactions to the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe film Thunderbolts have hit the internet following the films premiere on Tuesday, April 22. Thunderbolts is directed by Jake Schreier and will be released in movie theaters on Friday, May 2.
Thunderbolts is the second of three Marvel Cinematic Universe films to release this year, following Captain America: Brave New World in February and preceding The Fantastic Four: First Steps in July.
According to the first reactions to the film, Academy Award-nominated actress Florence Pugh is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the highlight. Praise also seems to be largely directed on the attention to emotion/character and the use of practical effects versus CGI.
“THUNDERBOLTS: finally a Marvel movie that treats mental health and depression as a serious matter and not like undercutting it for the sake of a quip. A legit good character ensemble piece with a compelling Florence Pugh & Lewis Pullman performance in the center. Yay. I liked it.”
THUNDERBOLTS: finally a Marvel movie that treats mental health and depression as a serious matter and not like undercutting it for the sake of a quip. A legit good character ensemble piece with a compelling Florence Pugh & Lewis Pullman performance in the center. Yay. I liked it. pic.twitter.com/bBzJQtJPRb
— Rendy Jones (@rendy_jones) April 23, 2025
“THUNDERBOLTS* is truly fantastic, the cast has electric chemistry with each other (Florence Pugh & Lewis Pullman are the standouts) and the action sequences are very strong. But most of all, the film’s story hit me like a ton of bricks, it’s bold, important & so well-written.”
THUNDERBOLTS* is truly fantastic, the cast has electric chemistry with each other (Florence Pugh & Lewis Pullman are the standouts) and the action sequences are very strong.
But most of all, the film’s story hit me like a ton of bricks, it’s bold, important & so well-written pic.twitter.com/dWPYSzBEJl
— Jacob (@JacobFisherDF) April 22, 2025
“Well Thunderbolts is easily one of the best MCU movies in a long time (and maybe one of my new personal faves). Has so much spark, charisma, and tells a genuinely emotional story you connect with. A tear was shed. Florence Pugh in particular superb, just walks away with it.”
Well #Thunderbolts is easily one of the best MCU movies in a long time (and maybe one of my new personal faves). Has so much spark, charisma, and tells a genuinely emotional story you connect with. A tear was shed. Florence Pugh in particular superb, just walks away with it pic.twitter.com/U7AzBgGZMl
— Emily Murray (@EmilyVMurray) April 22, 2025
Marvel has certainly made a concerted effort to make Thunderbolts seem like a more carefully and traditionally crafted film, as they released a teaser called “ABSOLUTE CINEMA” in which it touts the project as being filled with talent from A24 movies, specifically saying
Thunderbolts features:
“The stars of Midsommar, A Different Man, and You Hurt My Feelings, the writers and director of Beef the cinematographer of The Green Knight, the production designer of Hereditary, the editor of Minari and the composers of Everything Everywhere All At Once.”
Thunderbolts, hitting theaters on Friday, May 2, 2025, stars Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Hannah John-Kamen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Harrison Ford, Lewis Pullman, Geraldine Viswanathan, and more.
You can check out the official trailer for Thunderbolts — in my opinion, one of the better trailers Marvel has released in some time — below.