Marvel enlists Lodge 49’s Jake Schreier to direct Thunderbolts movie
Marvel's closest thing to the Suicide Squad is getting a movie of its own
Well, well, well: We may finally know what Julia Louis-Dreyfuss is up to in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After showing up at the end of Black Widow and then returning in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier (though COVID caused the timing of their release dates to swap) as the mysterious Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, we could have an idea of someplace where she could be showing up next.
That someplace is Thunderbolts, an upcoming Marvel Studios movie that is being billed as a “top-secret” project we know barely anything about. What we do know—as of today, thanks to Deadline—is that it will be directed by Jake Schreier, the filmmaker behind Paper Towns, some Kanye West music videos, and (put a pin in this one for later) six episodes of Lodge 49. We also know that the basic concept of the Thunderbolts from the comics is that it’s about a team of bad guys who are posing as good guys, with some incarnations positioning them as government agents who are forced to do dangerous stuff… sort of like a squad that goes on suicide missions, where the basic act of joining the squad might as well be considered suicide. Whatever you would call such a thing.
The comic book version also tends to feature Baron Zemo, played by Daniel Brühl in the MCU (including The Falcon And The Winter Soldier), and sometimes U.S. Agent, Wyatt Russell’s character from The Falcon And The Winter Soldier. Now, what other TV show was Wyatt Russell in? That’s right: Lodge 49, which featured six episodes directed by Jake Schreier!
That brings us to Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who was last seen working on some clearly evil scheme involving U.S. Agent in The Falcon And The Winter Solder, giving us a pretty straight line from that to Thunderbolts. It could be pitched as a team of government-backed Avengers who are all evil/damaged people who probably shouldn’t be superheroes, led by Julia Louis-Dreyfus (one version in the comics was led by General “Thunderbolt” Ross, who was a Red Hulk at the time, but that’s not going to happen in the movies).
That’s a lot of guessing what might happen and not a lot of knowing what will happen, so hopefully Marvel Studios starts making some real announcements soon.