Marvel Studios Confirms Which Original Avenger Each New Avenger Replaces

Marvel Studios shared a new piece of promotional material confirming who each individual Thunderbolt is most comparable to from the original Avengers. With Thunderbolts* now making its run in theaters as Phase 5's final movie, the ties to Earth's Mightiest Heroes quickly became clear as the story evolved on screen.

Marvel Studios shared a new poster for Thunderbolts* that included comparisons of each leading character to the MCU's original Avengers. Under the phrase, "Careful who you assemble," the main cast of the MCU's Thunderbolts* appears in shadow form walking above the original six heroes who assembled in 2012's The Avengers.

This poster is also reminiscent of one Marvel Studios released in 2019 for Avengers: Endgame (one of the two highest-grossing movies in history). This poster showed the original six Avengers walking alongside one another in the shadows under text reading, "Whatever it takes," one of the loglines for the movie.

Thunderbolts* brings together a team of misfit antiheroes from across the MCU in pursuit of a common goal - saving the world from a new all-powerful being in Sentry. Led by Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan, this team reluctantly joins forces to stop Valentina Allegra de Fontaine's quest for power while keeping Sentry from obliterating the world.

Thunderbolts* is now playing in theaters worldwide. Ahead are how the comparisons between each Thunderbolt and their Avengers counterparts play out:

Winter Soldier - Iron Man

The first characters tied together from the poster are two MCU veterans in Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier and Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark's Iron Man. While the two have shared plenty of screentime together (mostly in Captain America: Civil War), a few similarities can be be pointed out.

Most notably, both of them are enhanced by some kind of metal-based technology - Bucky with his vibranium arm and Tony with his swath of Iron Man suits. Additionally, they are seen as somewhat stoic leaders with a sense of humor that comes through in certain situations, but they both buckle down for business when the time comes.

Yelena - Black Widow

The least surprising comparison in this new Thunderbolts* poster comes with Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova and Scarlett Johansson's Natasha Romanoff (who was used in other Thunderbolts* marketing). The two were the headlining actors in 2021's Black Widow, which was Johansson's last MCU movie (thus far) and Pugh's first.

In short, while the two have contrasting personalities, they are both products of the Red Room program, boasting the same skillset physically as top-notch fighters. Combined with their innate connection as found family, the two will be inextricably linked throughout the rest of MCU history.

Walker - Captain America

Another easy duo from this new Thunderbolts* poster is seen with the matchup between John Walker/U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell) and Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans). While the two have not shared screentime (which will likely change with their casting in Avengers: Doomsday), this duo's similarities are not difficult to see.

Simply put, John Walker was originally picked to be Steve Rogers' successor as Captain America, boasting similar abilities, leadership, and proficiency with a shield. Of course, their personalities and demeanors are vastly different from each other, but the physical ties cannot be ignored.

Red Guardian - Hulk

Moving further along the list, fans see David Harbour's Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian) boasting the shadow of Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner (Hulk). Outside of being arguably the loudest members of their respective groups, it is only natural that they are paired up with one another in this advertising.

The Hulk and the Red Guardian are both the biggest members of their groups, respectively, and they also pack the hardest punch as the strongest of their teammates. While they have both mellowed out over the years (particularly with Banner becoming Smart Hulk), their roles for their teams are not dissimilar from one another.

Ghost - Hawkeye

Two of the more low-key/easy-to-miss members of the Thunderbolts and Avengers come in the form of Hannah John-Kamen's Ava Starr/Ghost and Jeremy Renner's Clint Barton/Hawkeye. Not to say they are not more than capable of inflicting damage on anyone in their path, but they often go overlooked on their respective rosters.

While boasting vastly different abilities, Hawkeye's sneaky nature and Ghost's ability to turn invisible and phase allow them to both fly under the radar and take out enemies without being noticed. Additionally, while neither is the flashiest of their teams, they can hold their own next to boisterous personalities and still make their impact felt.

Sentry - Thor

Even considering their wildly different personalities, Thor and Sentry are unquestionably the closest match to each other in the Thunderbolts and Avengers. Simply put, these are the two characters who boast extraordinary physical abilities that go far beyond what the normal human or super soldier can do.

Many of Thor and Sentry's abilities are similar, including flight and super strength, easily coming in as the most physically intimidating characters in their movies. However, they are vastly different when it comes to mental stability, putting them on slightly different character arcs moving forward.