Marvel Studios may have seen their replacement for Steven Yeun after The Walking Dead star recently backed out from playing the role of Sentry in the upcoming superhero movie Thunderbolts. The studio is reportedly eyeing the Top Gun: Maverick actor Lewis Pullman to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe and replace Yeun.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Pullman is Marvel Studios’ top choice to play the role of Robert “Bob/Robby” Reynolds, known as Sentry. The shining sentinel is one of the most powerful heroes in the world, though he has a dark side that becomes an unstoppable destructive force. The publication claims that the studio has an offer for the actor for the said role that Yeun vacated.
Anyhow, as of this writing, neither Marvel Studios nor Pullman’s rep has yet to confirm his casting. Known online scooper Daniel Richtman first broke the news that Pullman might play the role of Sentry in Thunderbolts.
Why did Steven Yeun leave the Thunderbolts?
Yeun was first reported to play the role of Sentry in Thunderbolts in February 2023, though Marvel Studios didn’t officially announce his casting. However, on January 2, 2024, news broke that the recent Emmy winner decided to leave the movie due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes last year that caused the film’s production delays. The movie was set for release in July 2024 but was pushed back to July 2025, and filming had yet to start.
In an interview with Variety, Yeun explained that the “time passing and things shifting” pulled him out of the project. But despite his exit, he’s confident that the film’s director, Jake Schreier, will do an incredible job.
He also expressed his interest in doing a Marvel movie in the future. Though he couldn’t say what film he wanted to be in, understanding that he had “pissed off too many people” for leaving, he had some ideas. “I heard if you put it out there, you'll never get it, so I'll keep it close to my chest,” he said.
What is Thunderbolts about?
Though the film’s official synopsis is yet to be revealed, Thunderbolts is known for featuring a group of antiheroes composed of mostly reformed supervillains. They were first introduced as a group of super-powered individuals who eventually became heroes to help protect the world when the Avengers were declared dead.
It’s a sequel to Ant-Man and the Wasp, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Black Widow, and Captain America: Brave New World and the 37th film in the MCU and the second movie in Phase Six. It will see Florence Pugh reprising her role as Yelena Belova, along with Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier, David Harbour as the Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as John Walker, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.
So far, Marvel Studios has yet to confirm if Pullman will play the role of Sentry in Thunderbolts. But if he does so, he will be a welcome addition to the MCU.
