Thunderbolts* ending explained: Is there a new Avengers?
Thunderbolts*, directed by Jake Schreier, releases in theaters across the U.S. on May 2, 2025. The film, starring Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, and more, brings a bunch of Marvel anti-heroes together to form a new kind of team as they uncover a deep conspiracy relating to something known as Project Sentry.
Warning: Spoilers for Thunderbolts* to follow. Reader discretion is advised.
For a long time now, fans have been asking what the asterisk in the Thunderbolts* title stands for, and the film answers that in a big way. By the end of the movie, the titular team is revealed to be The New Avengers by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. During the credits, the asterisk is removed, and the title changes to The New Avengers.
So, it looks like the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) might have finally found its new Avengers team.
The Thunderbolts are renamed to The New Avengers at the end of the film
One of the major plot points of the Thunderbolts* is that Valentina, the current CIA director of the MCU, is in the process of getting impeached for running illegal tests to create new superheroes. This leads to Robert Reynolds, aka Bob, participating in one of Valentina's medical trials, resulting in him becoming the superhero Sentry.
However, when Bob's dark side, the Void, takes over his Sentry form, the mismatched group of anti-heroes and outcasts must come together and help Bob take back control from the Void. The climax of the movie sees Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Alexei Shostakov, Ava Starr, and John Walker willingly walk into the Void's darkness to aid Bob overcome his past and defeat the dark entity.
In the aftermath of the battle, the band of misfits, now calling themselves the Thunderbolts, realize that they need to have Valentina arrested, as she was the one who was responsible for unleashing the Void that led to all of this destruction and havoc.
Just as they are about to arrest her, Valentina tricks the team into attending a press conference. She reveals to the public that this is what she has been working on for the past years, calling the group The New Avengers. The film ends with Yelena walking over to Valentina and telling her that the team "owns" her now.
Thunderbolts* post-credits scene sets up The Fantastic Four: First Steps
Like most Marvel movies, the Thunderbolts* has a mid and post-credits scene.
While the mid-credits scene pays off a joke set up at the beginning of the film, where Alexei Shostakov, aka the Red Guardian, finally gets to be on the Wheaties box and tries selling it to a woman, it's the post-credits scene that's important and sets up The Fantastic Four: First Steps, releasing July 25.
In the scene, The New Avengers are being sued by Sam Wilson, aka Captain America, as he owns the trademark to the Avengers name. During a conversation about this, Yelena mentions there is a crisis going on in space, and just then, an unidentified spaceship appears to be approaching Earth. The ship sports the logo of the Fantastic Four, hinting that the team has entered the 616 timeline.
As it has already been confirmed, The Fantastic Four: First Steps will be taking place in an alternate timeline. The post-credits scene here implies that they will eventually end up on Earth-616 following the events of their film.
How does Bob become Sentry?
In Thunderbolts*, Bob is introduced when Yelena Belova, U.S. Agent, Ghost, and Taskmaster are sent by Valentina to a secret science lab in the middle of the desert to take each other out. However, they soon catch on to the fact that it's a setup and meet Bob over there, who is shown to be a seemingly ordinary man. Throughout the film, though, it is revealed that he is anything but that.
Bob is someone with a troubled and abusive past who ended up getting addicted to meth. It is revealed that while travelling in South East Asia, he met a man who recruited him to be a part of a medical procedure, promising that he could be someone strong and powerful. This medical trial is Valentina's Project Sentry. As far as Valentina's knowledge goes, the project ended up being a failure, and she tries to get rid of any evidence relating to it.
However, with Bob being the only one who survived the project, Valentina tries to make him her own personal superhero. What she doesn't realize is that Bob has a dark side of his own, and it is what leads to the birth of the Void, a dark shadow of Bob who makes people experience their worst memories.
While the Void is brought under control by the end of the film with the Thunderbolts helping Bob face his past, he still can't use his powers, as that would mean unleashing his dark self as well.
Taskmaster dies in Thunderbolts*
While Thunderbolts* doesn't feature any major deaths, it does pull the rug from underneath the fans. Given how less Taskmaster was featured in the film's marketing, it was expected that she was going to have a minor role in the film.
During the fight scene in the lab, Taskmaster is shot in the head by Ghost, and that sequence takes place right at the start of the film, ending the character's run in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Thunderbolts* is currently playing in cinemas.
