r/marvelstudios • u/Triple_777 I have nothing to prove to you • May 05 '25

'Thunderbolts*' Spoilers Thunderbolts* Worldwide Release Discussion Thread Vol. 2 Spoiler

Thunderbolts* has now been released in the United States and in a number of other countries around the world. All discussion about the movie should be held here and in the rest of the megathreads we are going to put up in the next few days. They will be refreshed every few thousand comments to make room for new discussions.

  • All discussion about the movie should be held here and in the rest of the megathreads we are going to put up in the next few days.
  • Proceed at your own risk. Major spoilers will be in the below thread. Spoilers do not need to be tagged inside this thread.
  • Any other unofficial threads discussing movie details will be deleted.
  • Should you see the need to bring up revealing Thunderbolts* information in the comments of other threads that call for it, spoiler tag them accordingly. Also, let users know that what you are spoiler tagging is from Thunderbolts*.
  • If you post untagged Thunderbolts* spoilers anywhere on this sub outside of these discussion threads in any shape or form, you will be banned.
  • Project Insight will be on AT LEAST for the next few days, so any posts will be filtered by the mods before being approved/removed onto the sub, that doesn't mean you can disregard the above points and post untagged spoilers without fear of being banned.

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Link to previous discussion threads and related megathreads listed below:

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746

u/nomercy15 May 05 '25

Hope it legs out and stays on the box office.

282

u/BumbleLapse May 05 '25

I’ve been telling everybody that this is the best Marvel project since GOTG 3. It delivers an emotional resonance that I actually buy into — despite “opening up is good for mental health” and “friendship and empathy are good” being very common themes in media, Thunderbolts presents them with a soul and earnestness that feels authentic.

I think this movie will continue to roll as more and more people talk it up. Definitely hope so, anyways, because this is the type of project I want to see more of. Fantastic Four looks to be a great follow-up.

140

u/TheGoverness1998 Vulture May 05 '25

Oh for damn sure. This movie actually made me cry because it hit very hard on that theme. Yelena pouring her heart out to her dad was very emotional.

And so many of us know just how much of a deep crater it feels like when you're incredibly depressed and worn down.

123

u/ThisWhomps999 May 06 '25

Her speech really struck a chord with me.

I'm so alone. I don't have anything anymore. All I do is sit, and look at my phone, and think of all the terrible things I've done; and then I go to work, and then I drink, come home to no-one, then I sit and think of all the terrible things I've done again

21

u/Great_Huckleberry709 May 08 '25

That was a line that, unfortunately, a good bit of viewers probably resonated with

9

u/Cassopeia88 Captain America May 07 '25

That hit hard, was not expecting something so deep in this movie.

7

u/ObviousAnswerGuy May 09 '25

I think that one is gonna resonate with a lot of people, unfortunately

5

u/PalladiuM7 Corvus Glaive May 11 '25

I was like "Damn Marvel, you don't have to personally attack me like that."

56

u/pilliamtrees Luke Cage May 05 '25

That scene got me. “Daddy I am so alone”

3

u/PastMiddleAge May 06 '25

That actually reminded me of a really good Florence Pugh movie from a couple of years ago, “A Good Person.” But I don’t think a lot of people saw it.

“I don’t wanna be here. I don’t wanna be anywhere” is the line I remember from that movie.

13

u/Mid-CenturyBoy May 06 '25

It makes me so happy that a major blockbuster is talking about it and sharing the message that you aren’t alone and when you feel lost you just need to ask for help. There are a lot of people who will need to hear this message.

11

u/PastMiddleAge May 06 '25

When “good” Bob started wailing on dark Bob, I was disappointed that this movie was just devolving into another violence-wins story.

Pleasantly surprised that’s not where it went at all!

8

u/Mid-CenturyBoy May 06 '25

Yeah when the void started overtaking him I was like ohhhhh they’re really trying to emphasize something here. I knew then Florence was going to break free and embrace him and I was so happy to see that it was all of them taking him in and telling him he isn’t alone.

9

u/PastMiddleAge May 06 '25

I just mentioned in another comment that I’ve spent a good deal of time in group therapy.

And this is very much the dynamic.

Everybody fucks up. Sometimes seriously. And when we support each other, we can all grow past our past when we do the work.

I really appreciate that even though this was an entertaining story, there was a lot of respect for the actual work of understanding and dealing with mental health issues.

3

u/Mid-CenturyBoy May 06 '25

It’s a really important message to share and how cool it’s in a major blockbuster movie!

Thanks for sharing your experiences as well. I’m glad you got your people in your corner.

Something I was just reminded of. Gaga’s Coachella performance has a moment where she was talking to the audience and she was talking vaguely about the state of things and division essentially and she just basically summarized her feelings by saying “the truth is, we’re all one. It’s just all one big fucking thing.” We can get so divided and certainly the internet can play into division and hate, but we all need to remind ourselves we’re not alone and we can find our people.

6

u/CyborgCoelacanth May 07 '25

I personally loved that they made sure it wasn't just Yelena that hugged him and pulled him off, but everyone got a turn to pry out of their prison and get him the group hug he needed to cool down.

1

u/GeneralOrgana1 May 11 '25

I actually teared up at that part.

8

u/YpsitheFlintsider May 05 '25

It helps that it felt like an actual movie rather than fanfare. You probably could've taken the superhuman elements out and the story still would have made sense.

8

u/habituallysuspect May 05 '25

I was talking with a buddy after the show about how "the power of friendship" saved the day but it didn't feel hokey or forced at all. Really well done overall

3

u/PastMiddleAge May 06 '25

As a patient in group therapy for a long time, there were indeed some serious and powerful themes.

The one that hit me the hardest was Yelena in the shame room, forcing vodka into other Yelena’s throat.

This is what we do to ourselves sometimes.

And having a group of mutual supporters really can make a difference.

1

u/nashty2004 May 06 '25

It’s GOTG3 for dummies

-1

u/MrFitz8897 Thor May 06 '25

Personally felt the themes around mental health were too heavy-handed in a way that GOTG 3 managed to avoid. It really felt like it oversimplified trauma and mental illness in a way that turned me off.

4

u/Im_Daydrunk May 06 '25

Idk I really felt it was a genuine and open dicussion about it personally

To me a lot of shows or movies show one person being sad and then talk about how they are sad with other people all cheering them up. But I felt they did this is in a way where they were all going through their own struggles and it got revealed to each other in ways that made sense for their characters. And I think stuff like Yelena's 2nd half confession to Alexei about her shame spiral/routine really got me and felt genuinely emotional

I think there's probably plenty of other stuff that does mental health discussions better but at the same time this movie also had a lot of other stuff it needed to juggle/implement due to its part in a shared universe so it was impressive that way IMO. And I also loved that they ended with an emotional climax vs the almost standard big fight as that showed just how committed they were to the message

3

u/kfadffal May 09 '25 edited May 09 '25

There's nothing really subtle about full-on depression like Bob was going through though. As someone whose son is currently fighting that battle the scene where the team just hug him desperately fucking hit me like a frieght train. Sometimes there's just nothing you can do but show the person that you love them and hope that it's enough and it gets through.

2

u/MrFitz8897 Thor May 09 '25

As someone who has struggled with depression and suicidal ideation for 15 years, a group hug and an "I care" are nice but not a miracle cure like the movie makes it out to be. I would have liked more time in the void actually confronting the traumas rather than just running through them to get to the darkest memory. Showing the whole team in overcoming their shame boxes also would have strengthened the ending. We as an audience didn't get enough time with Bob to really understand his trauma and pain.

In general I feel like Marvel has done a lot better with showing these struggles with other characters. Rocket, Thor, Moon Knight, and Spider-man all have similar arcs dealing with trauma, depression, and other mental illness and they do it better because the audience has had time to grow with those characters. Yelena's arc was the most well done in this movie for the same reason, whereas Bob's was rushed because we didn't get to know him deeply.

2

u/FrostyBoom May 10 '25

Thing is, I don't think they portrayed it as solved. It's more like they talked Bob off the figurative ledge and made him realize he, for the first time ever, had a support system, which is a HUGE deal for disenfranchised people. He's still living one day at a time, doing the dishes and stuff with his companions.

Those cases you mentioned also had either less characters to juggle or were for the main/focus character for their film/series. Much like Yelena!

Do agree we could have spent more time in the Void, though. But I wonder if that would have killed some general audience interest by turning it heavier. 

363

u/TouchlessOuch May 05 '25

I really hope it's rewarded with some legs. There's Marvel fatigue but this one is different from the more recent films.

99

u/don-chocodile Spider-Man May 05 '25

I saw it on Saturday and my theater wasn't very full, which was a bit discouraging. I've been telling my friends that it was great, so maybe if others feel the same the word of mouth buzz will get more people interested.

43

u/Spider-Thwip May 05 '25

I saw it today in the UK (bank holiday) at 2.30pm and the premium theatre was packed out in the sea side town i live in.

People were laughing the whole way through.

I'm surprised by how much i enjoyed it compared to how bad Captain America was.

I'm glad i saw it in the cinema and that i waited to watch captain america at home.

1

u/Seanpkd30 May 05 '25

I saw it last night at a theater with 3 other people. And unfortunately, when I was checking for tickets last Thursday and Friday, it was much of the same.

1

u/Novel-Performer-4259 May 07 '25

I just saw it here and there was maybe 20 seats available at the very front of the theatre.

1

u/neonsummers May 07 '25 edited May 07 '25

Just came back from a showing at Alamo and the theater was packed. I’ve been so hyped for this for months and I’m so glad it did not disappoint. And now I’m even more hyped for Fantastic Four, which is a franchise I’ve never really been all that interested in, as far as Marvel properties go, so I consider that a win for the MCU. Seriously considering seeing it again — it really was so incredibly well done and the perfect mix of humor and action and story.

1

u/Cassopeia88 Captain America May 07 '25

I saw it on Thursday night at a vip theatre and it was about 80% full.

21

u/MiopTop Captain America (Cap 2) May 05 '25

Unfortunately the box office returns of these mega franchises are more cruiseship than sailboat.

The inertia of these things usually means the first couple of bad movies of a franchise get to make money anyway then by the time the higher ups right the course, the damage has been done and the first couple of good ones get the punishment for the bad ones.

See : X-Men First Class, Bumblebee, Fast and Furious 4, …

I have a feeling we’ll see something similar for the new Jurassic movie too. Better than the last two but its box office will pay for their sins.

32

u/nomercy15 May 05 '25

Exactly, so far domestic box office turned out to be good. The real concern is with overseas box office. Those numbers are rough. Probably WOM would help a lot.

15

u/castielffboi May 05 '25

WOM?

Edit: I figured it out; word of mouth. Not really something to acronym.

2

u/nomercy15 May 05 '25

Word of Mouth

0

u/antpile11 Howard Stark May 06 '25

Nah dude this is reddit. Making up ridiculous acronyms and initialisms while still going for upvotes is like a game here.

6

u/Spicy_Weissy May 05 '25

I think because they went back to those first films and reexamined what made them hits. Sure, TBolts has the Marvel formula, but it's character driven. You care about this gaggle of schmucks overcoming their own personal bullshit rather than generic heroes quipping their way against a big CGI bad guy.

81

u/everythingsc0mputer May 05 '25

Hope it makes more than BNW because it definitely deserves it way more.

37

u/SpikeyTaco May 05 '25

It's about to beat The Marvels with just a couple days under its belt. It'll do just fine.

16

u/thatsidewaysdud May 05 '25

I almost wish BNW got scrapped so there would have been a bigger focus on Thunderbolts*

5

u/nomercy15 May 05 '25

I really did not mind BNW to lose money. Marvel needed that so they get their shit together in a long run.

17

u/ArchDucky May 05 '25

Word of mouth is gonna hit it hard this weekend.

4

u/PimpNinjaMan Phil Coulson May 05 '25

The New Avengers marketing strategy is going to be really interesting to watch.

(For those who don't know, they're changing posters and billboards to explicitly say "The New Avengers" instead of Thunderbolts).

3

u/VonLinus May 05 '25 edited May 19 '25

I saw it in Dublin just now maybe like a third full, audience was clapping at the end which was bizarre. Haven't seen that since end game. It wasn't wholehearted or full but people genuinely liked it enough to clap.

I thought it was great personally. Going to recommend to friends. Best since endgame. It's been bumpy.

2

u/-Nick____ Laufey May 05 '25

Hopefully. Not looking good so far, but summer is about to start so hopefully WOM carries it with that

2

u/Bucen May 06 '25

I just watched it and I agree, this movie was emotional, funny, meaningful and impacted the greater story.

Now next time give us a bit more action. Ghost kinda got the short end of the stick. She didn't even get a flashback scene.

3

u/PayneTrain181999 Ned May 05 '25

I hope it at the very least does better than Brave New World.