Did Marvel Studios Just Spoil Thunderbolts in a Big Way?

WARNING: There are potential spoilers for Thunderbolts and Avengers: Doomsday ahead! Marvel Studios put the whole internet on high alert on Wednesday morning with a livestream titled “ANNOUNCEMENT.” It seems to be revealing the cast of Avengers: Doomsday one name at a time, giving us our lineup of heroes for the grand climax of the Multiverse Saga. The problem with this format is that it all but confirms the characters represented here will survive the movies and TV shows coming out between now and then. In a sense, you could consider that a spoiler — especially for Thunderbolts, as three members of that team have already shown up in the stream.

The Marvel Entertainment stream is still going at the time of this writing, but so far three actors in the main cast of Thunderbolts have shown up — Sebastian Stan, who plays Bucky Barnes, a.k.a. the Winter Soldier; Florence Pugh, who plays the Widow-trained assassin Yelena Belova; and Wyatt Russell, who plays John Walker, a.k.a. U.S. Agent. The other names we’ve seen so far are Anthony Mackie, Letitia Wright, Paul Rudd, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Ebon Moss- Bachrach, Simu Liu, and Florence Pugh.

It’s worth noting that the format of the stream emphasizes the actors, not their characters. We already know that MCU veteran Robert Downey Jr. is returning in Doomsday, but playing a different character than before, so technically, we can’t assume that all these actors are playing the roles they’re best known for. This is also the Multiverse Saga, after all, so concepts like variant characters are very much at play.

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Nonetheless, some fans felt that Stan and Russell’s inclusion in this big announcement took some of the tension away from Thunderbolts, which is only a few weeks away now. The movie hits theaters on May 2nd, and after that there’s only one more MCU film this year — The Fantastic Four: First Steps, premiering on July 25th. After that comes Doomsday on May 1, 2026.

The streaming series side of the franchise is not much busier between now and then. Daredevil: Born Again is airing now, and Ironheart is slated to premiere on June 24th, 2025. That show will follow Riri Williams — first introduced in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — as her technological superpowers go up against a mystically-empowered villain. There’s no indication that Wright’s character Shuri will make an appearance on that show, but that could be another potential spoiler in the continuity here.

All that said, part of the issue fans seem to have with Russell’s inclusion in Wednesday’s announcement is the implication that he will be a heroic figure in Doomsday — not just his inclusion in general. John Walker is not outright evil in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, but he is a politically and ethically fraught character, and some fans are not eager to see him counted as an “official Avenger.” Some fear this means Thunderbolts will go too far in redeeming him, but that concern seems to be balanced by the inclusion of Mejia, who played an outright genocidal villain in Wakanda Forever. Either this list isn’t the Avengers lineup, or redemption arcs are very much on the table.

Marvel’s big announcement is ongoing at the time of this writing, but you can find live updates on the stream here. Thunderbolts hits theaters on May 2nd, while previous MCU titles are streaming now on Disney+.