Thunderbolts called 'best' nobody saw

Marvel’s problem right now is not just making a good movie. It’s making a good movie that people feel they need to see. Thunderbolts* is the cleanest example of that gap. The film landed in 2025 to solid reviews and strong audience exits, but it never turned into the kind of must-watch event that used to come automatically with the MCU. Now that tension is back in the conversation because fans and critics keep circling the same verdict — this may have been one of Marvel’s better recent movies, but not enough people showed up. (boxofficemojo.com) ### Why is Thunderbolts* back in the discourse? A Portuguese YouTube review posted May 7 framed the movie as “the best Marvel movie nobody saw,” and that phrase stuck because it compresses the whole Thunderbolts* story into one line. The video argues that Marvel finally delivered a stronger, more character-driven entry, only for audience interest to lag behind the praise. That isn’t official industry analysis, but it neatly matches the broader online mood. (youtube.com) ### Was the movie actually liked? Basically, yes. Rotten Tomatoes describes it as a return to the tried-and-true MCU blueprint, with Florence Pugh singled out as the standout. Metacritic lists a 68 metascore from 53 critic reviews and a 7.2 user score. Those are not all-time Marvel highs, but they are comfortably better than the reception for several shakier post-Endgame releases. (rottentomatoes.com) At the box office. Thunderbolts* opened to $74.3 million domestic and ended at $190.3 million domestic. Worldwide, it started with $162.1 million. That is respectable in a vacuum, but the catch is budget and expectation. Variety pegged production at $180 million, with roughly $100 million in marketing, which means “pretty good” reviews were not enough on their own to make the movie feel like a breakout. (boxofficemojo.com) ### Why didn’t good word of mouth fix that? Because Marvel is no longer selling pure brand trust. For years, the logo itself was the event. Now each movie has to argue for itself. Thunderbolts* had a less famous team, arrived after a run of uneven MCU entries, and looked to some casual viewers like homework — a film built from side characters rather than headliners. Good exits helped, but they did not erase that hesitation. (deadline.com) ### Didn’t audiences like it once they got there? They did. Deadline noted the film’s A- CinemaScore, 94% Rotten Tomatoes audience score, 71% definite recommend on PostTrak, and 4.5-star audience rating. That is the frustrating part for Marvel. This was not a case where people rejected the movie after opening weekend. It was more like the movie struggled to convince enough people to start the conversation in the first place. (deadline.com) ### What does the “New Avengers” twist have to do with it? A lot, turns out. Right after opening, Marvel leaned into the asterisk and revealed it pointed to “The New Avengers.” That was a clever marketing move, but it also read like a late effort to upgrade the movie’s importance after the first weekend. In other words, Marvel seemed to recognize that the film needed a bigger hook than “the antihero team-up you’ve heard of, maybe.” (deadline.com) ### Why are Joe Russo’s comments part of this? Because Russo’s spoiler-culture complaint gets at the same broader anxiety around Marvel. He argued this week that spoiler policing has become so intense that fans are scared to engage with material before release. That doesn’t explain Thunderbolts* by itself, but it fits the bigger reset story — Marvel is trying to rebuild excitement in a franchise environment where hype no longer spreads as easily or as naturally as it once did. (cinemaexpress.com) ### Bottom line? Thunderbolts* looks less like a flop than a warning. Marvel can still make a movie people enjoy. But enjoyment after release is not the same thing as urgency before release. Until the studio closes that gap, it will keep making films that are better than the discourse around them — and smaller than the machine behind them. (boxofficemojo.com)