Don’t Worry, That Isn’t The MCU’s Final Thunderbolts Team

Marvel’s Thunderbolts team seems somewhat disappointing at first glance, but more members are on the way. The Marvel Cinematic Universe will change significantly when the Thunderbolts team forms in Phase 5. Despite the various forms the concept has taken in the comics, the general belief was that Thunderbolts would be the MCU’s answer to Suicide Squad and feature a roster of villains. The official Thunderbolts lineup reveal at D23 2022 paints a different picture: Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster, U.S. Agent, and Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine were revealed to be involved.

The MCU Thunderbolts team features some popular characters, like Yelena, Bucky, and Red Guardian, but it has proven to be a bit of a controversial assembly. Several characters have been villains in the past, but Ghost, Taskmaster, and U.S. Agent have already been partially redeemed. The other disappointment with Thunderbolts‘ roster comes with the powers involved. Three of them are variations of super-soldiers, while two others are glorified super assassins. Ghost is the only one with any unique powers and those not tied to super strength and more traditional abilities. But, the worries about the Thunderbolts team might not be warranted after all.

D23 2022’s Thunderbolts unveiling might have felt like the final version of the team, but that does not appear to be the case. Back at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 when Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige confirmed the film’s development, he mentioned (via Comicbook) that the team will include characters audiences have not met yet. This rare potential slip from Marvel’s head honcho seemingly confirms that the MCU’s Thunderbolts team is not complete. Instead, it appears that Marvel may have purposefully left out some characters that will debut in the movie or even have roles to play in other MCU Phase 4 and 5 projects. So, Marvel may have teased this initial team to get audiences excited while still holding back more surprises for the future.

Which Future MCU Characters Can Still Join The Thunderbolts Team?

There are plenty of future MCU characters who can join Thunderbolts‘ MCU team. Audiences have already met Abomination multiple times, but revealing his role would spoil what is yet to come in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law. The same is true for any potential part that Titania could have with the group. Marvel is also known to be bringing Namor and The Hood to the shared universe in the near future. These are just a few of the known villains/anti-heroes coming in the Multiverse Saga that could help complete the team and fit with MCU’s Thunderbolts setup, while Punisher or Deadpool could even join too.

It will be somewhat surprising if Marvel does not use Thunderbolts to introduce some main characters associated with the team in the comics. Future MCU characters like Songbird, Atlas, Moonstone, and Techno could be part of the Thunderbolts team. Marvel might even be attempting to protect a major surprise by not including Baron Zemo in Thunderbolts to hide his secret role as Citizen V. There will be plenty of chances for the roster to grow moving forward. Now it is just a matter of waiting to see which future MCU characters do join Thunderbolts.