Summary
Thunderbolts*cast member Sebastian Stan compared the Marvel Studios film to one of the most celebrated coming-of-age movies of the ’80s.
Thunderbolts* features an ensemble cast of actors reprising their roles as some of the MCU’s most memorable anti-heroes. The titular team is comprised of Stan as Bucky Barnes, Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as John Walker/US Agent, Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster,Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, and Lewis Pullman as Sentry. Because this team consists of characters who debuted in separate MCU movies but aren’t as heroic as the Avengers,Thunderbolts*has been described by some asThe AvengersmeetsGuardians of the Galaxy. However, Sebastian Stan seemingly wouldn’t characterizeThunderbolts*this way.
Last year, Stan hadcomparedThunderbolts* toOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. During a recent interview withDeadline,he instead comparedThunderbolts* to The Breakfast Club, the 1985 teen coming-of-age-comedy written and directed by John Hughes. Stan first saidThunderbolts*couldn’t be compared to any previous MCU film because of the group of actors and characters involved. He praised hisThunderbolts*co-stars and expressed his excitement for fans to see the cast’s chemistry on screen. “It’s a little bit likeThe Breakfast Club. It has its own vibe, and it’s funny, and it’s real,” Stan said.
Stan elaborated on what he meant by sayingThunderbolts*was “real,” noting that the performers did real stunts and relied less on CGI. “When you’re watching a truck blow up, it’s a truck blown up. It’s not CGI,” he explained. “Marvel really wanted this to have its own- there were many things in the movie that were actually done practically, and I think that does go a long way, because people are just smart. I think audiences just, they know.” This will likely be welcomed news after recent MCU films likeAnt-Man 3were criticized for poor CGI.
While a superhero movie likeThunderboltsand a teen comedy likeThe Breakfast Clubmay not seem similar at first, it’s not difficult to see why Stan would make the comparison.The Breakfast Clubalso features a cast of misfits from different backgrounds who find camaraderie after being forced to spend time together. Of course, the circumstances that brought the Thunderbolts together couldn’t be more different than how theBreakfast Clubkids meet. WithThunderboltstest screening reportedly receiving positive reactions, Stan’s comparison to the belovedBreakfast Clubbodes well for the upcoming MCU film if he’s correct.
Thunderbolts*is scheduled to be released in theaters on July 11, 2025.
Thunderbolts*
Marvel’s Thunderbolts is a superhero movie based on the comic team of the same name. The movie acts as a part of the MCU’s fifth phase of films. The film sees the likes of Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, Wyatt Russell, the Red Guardian, and more as an unlikely group of heroes and villains brought together to fight for good.
