Could the movie “The Thunderbolts” adapt the plot of “Captain America: Cold War”?

July 13, 2024

A word that defines the future of MCU is mysterious. The future films on Marvel’s radar have few details about their plot. One of these films, The Thunderboltsis a prime example of this. Only a handful of characters are on the line to give fans a glimpse into the antihero team’s plans. However, characters like Bucky Barnes and the US agent version of Captain America could provide clues as to what plot the film could adapt: Captain America: Cold War.

Cold War is a relatively new story set in the world of Marvel Comics that adds a new level of mystery and intrigue to the lives of Steve Rogers, Sam Wison and Bucky Barnes. The story brings a whole new shadowy organization into the lives of spies and heroes, testing the heroes in ways they could never have imagined. In the end, Bucky takes on a new role and mission that elevates his status in the Marvel Universe. This includes building a new Thunderbolts team that will go straight into the MCUCould the MCU’s Thunderbolts movie be an adaptation? Captain America: Cold War?

Rumor: The plot of MCU’s Thunderbolts may have been revealed

Rumor has it that the plot of Thunderbolts is completely different than originally expected and closely resembles a DC movie, which has fans worried.

The Thunderbolts explained

Audiences need to have some background on the team to understand how this storyline might tie into the film. The Thunderbolts were founded by Baron Zemo, who initially brought the team together under the guise of reforming the Masters of Evil. But before this new version of the crime team could strike, the powerful mutant villain Onslaught appeared to take out both the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. Seeing a gap in the world for super-powered protectors, Zemo and his teammates revamped their image and became heroes, gaining the public’s trust and gaining access to information only available to the Avengers and the SHIELD network.

Before their plan could be realized, however, the Avengers and FF returned. At this point, Zemo revealed the true nature of the Thunderbolt to the world in order to prevent his allies from becoming full-fledged heroes. This led to a battle with Zemo, who escaped. Since that first collaboration, new versions of the Thunderbolts have come and gone. Norman Osborn’s Thunderbolts emerged in the superhero’s wake Civil Warwhile Wilson Fisk’s Thunderbolts were built to arrest heroes in NYC who violated the vigilantism laws he enacted. However, the latest version of the team came into being when Bucky Barnes became The Revolution.

Cold War and the Revolution

Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier

In the double series Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty And Captain America: Symbol of TruthSteve Rogers and Sam Wilson were drawn into a major conflict, the Cold War. It involved Steve Rogers discovering a secret organization called The Outer Circle. The organization was founded after World War I to manipulate world events and create a perfect utopia. To do this, they created the Century Game, in which each member of the cabal took turns to manipulate world events in their favor. Five members, called the Revolution, formed the leadership of the organization – including a renegade agent who fought against the machinations of the other four members.

Their game included assassins created for their purposes, called Starpoints. It turns out they had manipulated Bucky Barnes into turning him into the Winter Soldier and using him as a Starpoint. They also adapted Captain America’s famous shield as their symbol to lure him into conflict with the group in the future. This plan worked, but after several conflicts, Steve and Bucky confronted the group, only for Bucky to throw Cap off the group’s ship after taking out the Revolution himself, and join the group as The New Revolution.

While he worked behind the scenes with Steve in his new role to stop AIM and MODOK from destroying New York City, Sam and Falcon battled the Black Panther villain White Wolf. They fought alongside Captain America’s ally Nomad, also known as Captain America’s adopted son Ian Rogers. This led to the Cold War, when Steve and Sam had to infiltrate Dimension Z to rescue Nomad and stop the Outer Circle.

The new revolution brings back the Thunderbolts

Valentina Allegra de Fontaine in “Falcon & Winter Soldier”, Bucky in “Falcon & Winter Soldier”, Yelena in “Hawkeye”

Following the events of the Cold War, Bucky, in his role as The New Revolution, is able to dismantle the entire Outer Circle and gain access to their years of resources and information. He uses this to work with La Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine to form a team to stop Red Skull once and for all. They recruit The Destroyer and Red Guardian (Sharon Carters) to their cause, as well as Black Widow and White Widow, Shang-Chi and US Agent, and pit them against Red Skull, Wilson Fisk and even Doctor Doom over the course of the new Thunderbolts team’s story.

This creates an interesting new story for the Thunderboltsas many team members are part of the upcoming MCU film. From Contessa Valentina to White Widow, Red Guardian and US Agent, the team will also include Ghost from Ant-Man and the Wasp and Taskmaster from Black Widow’s solo film. While initial reports of The Sentry’s involvement in the film are not yet definitive, a loose adaptation of Cold War with this cast of heroes and anti-heroes could prove fruitful. A new shadowy organization like The Outer Circle, uncovered after the combined fall of Shield and Hydra in 2017, could prove fruitful. MCU could be just what the franchise needs. It could also allow characters like Kingpin and Doctor Doom to compete with the larger MCU as a whole for the future.

Thunderbolts: The Return of the Super Heroes (2025)

Release date: May 5, 2025
director: Jake Schreier
Pour: Sebastian Stan, Florence Pugh, Hannah John-Kamen, Wyatt Russell, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Harrison Ford, Laurence Fox, Rachel Ward, Lewis Pullman, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko
Studio: Walt Disney Studios film images
Manufacturer: Kevin Feige
Production company: Marvel Studios