The upcoming Marvel Studios production Thunderbolts is going to feature multiple actors from various previous Marvel films and TV shows reprising their roles. It’s got Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, Wyatt Russell as US Agent, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, and Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster… and if Thunderbolts had started filming last summer, as it was supposed to before the strikes hit, it also would have had actress/writer/comedian Ayo Edebiri, whose credits include Big Mouth, The Bear, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, in the cast. Unfortunately for Edebiri, the production delay caused her to run into scheduling issues, so she has had to drop out of the project. Deadline reports that the character she was going to be playing will now be played by Geraldine Viswanathan.
Viswanathan’s credits include Blockers, The Package, Hala, Bad Education, The Broken Hearts Gallery, 7 Days, Cat Person, The Beanie Bubble, and Miracle Workers. Details on the role she’ll be playing in Thunderbolts haven’t been revealed.
Jake Schreier (Paper Towns) will be directing Thunderbolts from a screenplay that has been worked on by Eric Pearson (Black Widow) and Lee Sung Jin (Beef). Filming is expected to begin sometime next month.
The actors mentioned above are joined in the cast by Harrison Ford as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, a role that was previously played by the late William Hurt in The Incredible Hulk, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Black Widow. Before Thunderbolts is released, we’ll first see Ford play Ross in Captain America: Brave New World, which is set to reach theatres on February 14, 2025. Thunderbolts will follow on July 25, 2025.
Steven Yeun had been cast in a role believed to be the Marvel Comics character Sentry, but he also ran into scheduling issues. It looks like he’s being replaced by Lewis Pullman.
It’s a shame that Steven Yeun and Ayo Edebiri both had to drop out of Thunderbolts after being cast in the film – but I’m also a big fan of Lewis Pullman and Geraldine Viswanathan, so I’m hyped to see both of these replacements enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
What do you think of Geraldine Viswanathan being cast in Thunderbolts? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.