by Director Jake Schreier of Marvel Studios disputed the notion that Thunderbolts is Black Widow 2.
Thunderbolts, which is currently scheduled for release on December 20, 2024, will center on a group of MCU antiheroes, including US Agent, Bucky Barnes, Ghost, Red Guardian, Yelena Belova, Taskmaker, and Val, all of whom had their film debuts in the 2021 Black Widow film.
But the Thunderbolts director now claims the opposite, despite a strong cast that centers around Black Widow and earlier assertions about Thunderbolts’ sequel potential.
Black Widow 2 Is Not Thunderbolts
Director Jake Schreier claims that Thunderbolts from 2024 is “not a sequel” to Black Widow from 2021.
The notion that Thunderbolts was a sort of sequel originally emerged when Andy Park, Marvel Studios Director of Visual Development, commented that the Phase 5 movie was like “a Black Widow sequel:”
“Taskmaster, the Red Guardian, Yelena, AND Valentina Allegra de Fontaine will be returning in the upcoming ‘THUNDERBOLTS’ film. It’s like it’s a ‘Black Widow’ sequel & these movies are connected or something! 😉 It’s gonna get interesting”
However, in an interview with Collider, Schreier insisted Thunderbolts isn’t even a sequel, calling it “different” and “a new kind of story:”
“It was just a really different approach and a new kind of story to tell amidst that, which I know they’ve made so many things, but it’s not a sequel.”
The director recognized the reappearance of Scarlett Johansson’s MCU co-stars, adding, “Yes, these characters have appeared before,” but once more previewed Thunderbolt’s “new” plot and a “perspective” fans aren’t expecting:
“Yes, these characters have appeared before, but it is a new story being told and a story, I think, with a very different perspective than maybe people aren’t expecting, and I think that that felt exciting and felt like a real challenge worth taking on.”
Thunderbolts Still Has Relationships with Black Widow
Although Thunderbolts won’t be Black Widow 2, the movie will still feature several of Black Widow’s former cast members.
Jake Schreier actually implies the contrary in his remarks, saying that Thunderbolts is “about characters” and “something specific” that binds this oddball squad together.
If that’s the case, it’s unlikely that scenes from the Scarlett Johansson movie won’t be involved, especially in relation to Taskmaster and Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova.
Schreier and Andy Park may have both meant the same thing when they said that Thunderbolts will continue the stories of the Black Widow characters but not the movie’s overall plot.
It’s also possible that Park was at the time telling the truth.
Andy Park made his comments about the sequel in January before there were any rumors that Thunderbolts was being rewritten because it was “too focused on the Black Widow characters.”
Unknown if Black Widow 2 was ever intended to be in this Phase 5 movie.
The most pressing query at this point is the start date of the film.
The Writers Guild of America strike caused the production of Thunderbolts to be put on hold before filming ever began.
Production on Thunderbolts will continue to be suspended until the WGA and current SAG-AFTRA strikes are resolved.
The current release date for Thunderbolts is December 20, 2024.
Who is replacing Black Widow?
Pugh made her film debut in Black Widow (2021) as Yelena Belova. Belova almost replaced Black Widow in the MCU after Endgame, and she made her final appearance in the 2021 Disney+ series Hawkeye.
Who is the son of the Black Widow?
Natasha Romanoff and James Grey’s genetic son Stevie was a product of artificial genetic engineering. A group of Black Widow’s opponents kidnapped Natasha and forced her to assume a new identity, just like they did with James, and then used their genes to make him in a lab.
Is Black Widow hit or flop?
Black Widow earned more than $379 million worldwide and shattered many pandemic box office records. Critics gave the movie generally favorable reviews, praising Johansson and Pugh’s acting and the action scenes in particular.
