Marvel's General "Thunderbolt" Ross' MCU future.
While the Thunderbolts cast does not officially include "Thunderbolt" Ross yet, there's mounting evidence that he is in the movie. Aside from the fact General Ross shares his moniker with the infamous Marvel Comics antihero squad, Ross has been positioned as a villain for the Avengers in William Hurt's latest outings as a character, most notably when Ross became crucial to ing the Sokovia Accords into law. With versions of Marvel Comics' Thunderbolts.
Ross/Red Hulk Was A Thunderbolts Staple In The Comics
Red Hulk's place among the MCU's Thunderbolts team would make plenty of sense. General Ross/Red Hulk formed his Thunderbolts in the aftermath of the Marvel Comics' Avengers vs X-Men event in 2012, modeling it on a previous team he'd assembled known as Code Red. Code Red was established with the express purpose of killing mutant mercenary Domino (the character Zazie Beats played in Deadpool 2), which already gives an indication of the gray morality of General Ross and the teams he takes the helm of. Ross' Thunderbolts include Elektra, Punisher, Venom, Deadpool, Ghost Rider, Mercy, and The Leader. Notably, The Leader is also confirmed to be in Captain America: New World Order, played by The Incredible Hulk's Tim Blake Nelson. Now that Thunderbolts is on the way, this version of the Thunderbolts team could be the one that forms in the MCU. Considering how loosely Marvel adapts story arcs from the source material, it wouldn't be a surprise if Marvel altered the team's comic book origin and based their name entirely on General "Thunderbolt" Ross.
General Ross Has A Major Captain America 4 Role
Marvel's Thunderbolts team getting its name from Ross/Red Hulk is even more possible with Harrison Ford's Ross getting a major role in the fourth Captain America movie. The Harrison Ford MCU character is likely to be the main antagonist of Captain America: New World Order, as Ross has been a thorn in the Avengers' side since MCU Phase 1. Even though he's no longer played by Will Hurt, the MCU General Ross looks set to continue being a major player in the MCU's superhero politics. The Harrison Ford MCU casting was a big deal — Ford was both Han Solo and Indiana Jones, a mainstay of two of the most successful franchises in cinematic history. Bringing Ford in for the new General Ross in Captain America 4 is highly unlikely to mean the character's MCU presence will diminish.
Thunderbolts immediately follows Captain America: New World Order. The chances of it being a coincidence that a character who literally has the word "Thunderbolt" in their moniker appears in the movie directly precedingThunderbolts are slim. Moreover, Tim Blake Nelson's Samuel Sterns' Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (the first movie in MCU Phase 5).
Thunderbolts may finally give audiences what they want by capping off the Secret Invasion. Nothing's been set in stone, but Marvel is highly unlikely to have recast "Thunderbolt" Ross with one of the biggest movie stars in history if they didn't have equally tremendous plans for the character.
