Florence Pugh describes Thunderbolts* as resembling a ‘badass indie film in the style of A24.’

      Marvel Studios

      Four years after her initial appearance as Yelena Belova in Black Widow, Florence Pugh is returning in Thunderbolts*. In a recent interview with the film's cast and creative team, Pugh shared with Empire how the movie diverges from typical Marvel offerings. “It ended up becoming this quite badass indie, A24-feeling assassin movie with Marvel superheroes,” she remarked.

      Jake Schreier, who directed the film and the A24-produced Netflix series Beef, was instructed to create “something different.” He pointed out, “There’s a certain amount of that Beef tone in it, which feels distinctive. We infused an emotional darkness that resonates, but it doesn’t come at the cost of humor.”

      Thunderbolts follows a team of antiheroes, many of whom have appeared in various Marvel projects, as they band together for a mission assigned by the U.S. government. It bears some resemblance to Marvel's version of The Suicide Squad. Alongside Pugh, the cast includes Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen, and Olga Kurylenko, with Lewis Pullman portraying a new character named Bob.

      “Yelena sees parts of herself in him,” Pugh mentioned regarding her character's dynamic with Pullman’s. “She has always been someone who wants to take care of others. She has a soft spot for him, essentially enjoying looking after him because he’s useless. He’s absolutely useless.”

      While Marvel films have drawn comparisons to ’70s conspiracy thrillers in the past, this might be the first time an association with an A24 film has been made. We’ll find out if the comparison holds when the movie releases in theaters on May 2.

      Joe Allen is a freelance writer at Digital Trends, where he covers Movies and TV. He frequently writes about streaming...

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