Marvel Studios' Thunderbolts has found its latest cast member in The Bear breakout star Ayo Edebiri.
According to Variety, Edebiri has boarded the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film in an undisclosed role. Edebiri joins Thunderbolts' already-stacked ensemble cast, which also includes Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, Wyatt Russell, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko and Harrison Ford. Directed by Jake Schreier from a script by Eric Pearson, the film is currently scheduled to premiere on July 26, 2024 as part of Phase Five of the MCU.
Edebiri is perhaps best known for her role as Sydney Adamu on FX's critically-acclaimed Hulu original series The Bear, starring opposite the likes of Jeremy Allen White and Andor alum Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Edebiri is also known for her voice role as Missy Foreman-Greenwald on Netflix's adult animated series Big Mouth, having taken over the role from Jenny Slate starting with Season 4. What's more, Edebiri works as a writer on the FX series What We Do in the Shadows, with her work on the Season 4 episode "Private School" earning her nominations at the NAACP Image Awards and the Writers Guild of America Awards.
Who Are Marvel's Thunderbolts?
Created by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley, the Thunderbolts first appeared in 1996's Incredible Hulk #449. Formed by Baron Zemo as part of his quest for global domination, the original incarnation of the Thunderbolts was comprised of villains pretending to be superheroes. However, more recent incarnations of the Thunderbolts have been portrayed as more legitimate superhero outfits, typically being made up of anti-heroes and reformed villains. Certain iterations of the Marvel team have also operated at the behest of the government, thus strengthening comparisons between the Thunderbolts and DC's Suicide Squad.
At San Diego Comic-Con 2022, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige officially announced a Thunderbolts film as part of the studio's Phase Five slate. (Thunderbolts was originally intended to close out Phase Five of the MCU, though that honor now goes to Marvel's Blade reboot film, which is itself due to bow in theaters on Sept. 6, 2024.) The MCU's Thunderbolts lineup consists of characters who already exist in the shared cinematic universe -- namely, Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier (Stan), Ava Starr/Ghost (John-Kamen), John Walker/U.S. Agent (Russell), Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Louis-Dreyfus), Yelena Belova/Black Widow (Pugh), Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (Harbour) and Antonia Dreykov/Taskmaster (Kurylenko).
As previously mentioned, Thunderbolts' cast also includes none other than Star Wars and Blade Runner alum Harrison Ford. Ford is slated to make his MCU debut in the film Captain America: New World Order -- out May 3, 2024 -- as Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, taking over the role from the late William Hurt. Ford will then reprise his role as Thunderbolt Ross in Thunderbolts, which releases in theaters just two months after New World Order.
Marvel Studios' Thunderbolts opens in theaters on July 26, 2024.
Source: Variety