Filming of Thunderbolts, the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film about the series’ anti-heroes, has been delayed due to the ongoing writers’ strike, and Deadline report. Production was due to begin in Atlanta in the coming weeks but is now expected to start after the strike ends.
Thunderbolts is just the latest production hit by the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike. The union, which represents some 11,500 writers across film, television and more, went on strike earlier this month over a dispute over pay in an increasingly streaming-dominated era. The WGA is also trying to regulate the use of generative AI in authors’ rooms.
Blade’s production was also reportedly affected
In addition to Thunderbolts, there have been reports that several other Marvel productions have been affected by the strike action. Earlier this month, noted that the Mahershala Ali remake of Blade was the first major film to have production halted due to the strike (it was slated for September 2024 release, though it’s unclear if that’s changing will), and so on. There have also been reports of disruptions to the Marvel television shows Daredevil: Born Again and Wonder Man.
Marvel is far from the only studio whose projects are being impacted by the striking writers. Deadline notes that during this early phase of the strike, television shows were hit harder than films, with late-night talk shows among the most notorious early casualties. Affected projects include: Yellow jackets, stranger thingsSeverance, Hacks and the upcoming Game of Thrones spinoff The Hedge Knight.
Thunderbolts was due out in July 2024, but it’s unclear if that will change due to the production delay. It stars Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier, David Harbor as the Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as a US agent, Hannah John-Kamen as the Ghost, Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine . Jake Schreier is directing.