ScreenCrush: The Podcast! - Thunderbolts Post-Credits and Ending Explained!

Episode Date: May 2, 2025

The Thunderbolts has a shocking ending that the team were secretly...the new Avengers! IN this video, we explain the reveal, the final battle against the Void, and that set-up for Avengers: Doomsday, Avengers: Secret Wars, and Fantastic Four: First Steps--and what this all means for the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey, welcome back to Screen Crush. I'm Ryan Erie, and let's explain that massive Thunderbolts ending. The Fantastic Four have arrived in the MCU. And we finally know what the asterisk stands for, and it's the new Avengers. So we're going to explain what this means for the other Avengers team that Sam is assembling. But we also need to explain the century and what actually happens inside of the void. And of course, the mid-credit scene and the massive post-credit scene and what this all means for the Fantastic Four and Galactus and how it all connects to Dr. Dooms plan to take over the multiverse and Avengers Dooms Day and Secret Wars. So let's get into the new Avengers. Remember, now you can

get screen crushed on all of your favorite podcast platforms and we have designed Marvel Parity merch for you guys that you can find in the description below. Okay, so let's start with the century. Bob is the only survivor of experiments made by Valentina and her evil corporation to create superhumans. Those experiments transform Bob into the century who's supposedly the most powerful super being in the world. Yes, even more powerful than Thor, Captain Marvel, Hulk, and Gaia. Welcome, Strongest Avenger. Oh, what? So how did he get those powers? Well, the movie doesn't have to go into much detail about how the Sentry was created. But in the comics, Century is created with a Super Soldier Serum. He is like a twisted version of Captain America. The serum gave him the power of a million

exploding suns. But in the movie, Bob is one of many test subjects. So yeah, the Century is basically a less evil homelander that is actually way more dangerous. Anyways, after Valentina discovers what Bob can do, she manipulates him and she's planning on announcing him to the world as the great new superhero, the century. He's stronger than all of the Avengers rolled into one and soon to be known as Earth's mightiest hero. All right, so why is Bob working for Valentina? Well, Bob suffers from severe mental illness, dealing with extremely low self-esteem.

So Valentina exploits his insecurity and depression to give him a semblance of self-worth by raising him up as the century. But of course, Valentina is planning to use him as a nuclear deterrent against anyone who stands in her way. And since he's returning in Avengers Doomsday, you just know he's going to be a major powerhouse in the multiversal war. But five minutes after the century becomes a hero, he goes rogue and turns into the void. Okay, so why did he go evil all of a sudden? Well, Bob is a very complicated individual. You see, if Bob gained his powers from some sort of extra super serum, then this explains how the void is formed. The serum amplifies everything, especially personality traits. So Steve was a good man to begin with, so the serum only amplifies what was

already there. But in Walker's case, he took the serum when he was dealing with extreme insecurity over becoming Captain America. So the serum made him extremely unstable. I am Captain America. But unlike any other super soldier previously, Bob suffered from a severe mental illness. He had an extremely traumatic life ever since he was a child, and his depression drove him to substance abuse. So what happens when you mix a very fragile mental state, drugs, and a super serum? You get the most dangerous super being on earth. So Bob succumbs to his dark side, which is manifested as the void. He's like a living black hole that sucks the light out of everything. Now, in the comics, there are a few different interpretations of the void. It might

be this ancient entity that bonded with Bob. But usually, the void is depicted as the manifestation of Bob's mental illness, depression, and fears. In the movie, it hears to this interpretation, which I absolutely love. The void becomes a visual representation of Bob's emptiness. Now, all his fears burst into the world. His lack of self-worth and depression are threatening to consume everything, just like how it consumed him for his entire life. And then the void's darkness grows and consumes New York. And the consuming darkness of the void signifies the trauma that the thunderbolts are dealing with. All of them suffer from a void inside themselves because of their traumatic past. They were exploited, brainwashed, and forced to do horrible things. They're stuck,

from constant remorse and unable to move on with their lives. They cannot outrun the voids of their own past, just like the physical void is this inescapable emptiness that consumes everything. It's just like this wave washing over me again and again. It knocks me down. When I try to stand up, it just comes for me again. It's just going to drown me. So it's actually a brilliant way to have the Thunderbolts face their traumatic pass

by actually experiencing those paths while inside the void. It is a very personal dive into these characters that allows us to literally enter the fracture mind of these tortured anti-heroes. Because inside the void is a hell of traumas and dark memories. It's a lot like the dreams from inception or the memories from eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. And as the thunderbolts go through their memories, they find Bob hiding deep inside all of that darkness of trauma. And then they see his most traumatic memories. They're attacked by a guy in a chicken suit, twirling a sign. I'm not sure if this is a reference to Breaking Bad, you know, when Jesse tries to turn his life around,

But then he meets Badger swinging a sign just like the chicken guy. And then they end up cooking meth together. So maybe Bob tried to get clean, but something happened with the chicken man and things got worse. And that is Bob's life story. Because one of the most messed up memories is when he was a kid, his mom told him that he always makes things worse. And that was after he tried to protect her from his father who was beating her. It wasn't your fault.

You were protecting your mother. I didn't do it for her. So yeah, with such a messed up, childhood, it's easy to see why Bob dealt with so much depression and insecurity for all of his life. This drove him to drugs because it was his only way to escape from his crushing reality. Now, the void itself represents a form of escapism because Bob is hiding inside all of that darkness while his evil self is in control. But the worst memory is when Bob first gained his powers. In the lab, he killed two workers. Now, wait, how is this memory worse than his evil dad hurting his mom?

Well, because this is the first time Bob lost control over his inner darkness, you know, meaning the void and people got hurt because of him. Bob is actually a decent guy who doesn't want to harm anyone, so clearly his having too much power and killing people indiscriminately messed him up. He felt so lonely and worthless because his parents made him feel that way and he felt alone all of his life. But in the end, the Thunderbolts helped Bob overcome that darkness simply by being there for him. And Bucky also gives the team a pep talk when he first recruits them. Wait, us? Yeah, you. Why, you got some place to be? Now, at the start of the movie, Bucky is working on exposing Valentina, and he's conflicted about doing it the right way since he's a member of Congress or doing things the Winter Soldier way. He sort of ends up doing things the Thunderbolts way after recruiting them to stop Bob. He tells them they can't escape the past, but that doesn't mean the past has to define who they are in the present.

So you can either live with it forever. Or you can do something about it. It's Alexi who really gives you Lane of the speech that helps her and then save Bob, and also, you know, saves the world. Now, earlier in the movie, Yelena formed a strong bond with Bob, and this connection helps her to rescue him from his own void. Yelena, like the other Thunderbolts, suffers from depression. But like Bob, she experienced terrible things from a very young age, like the Red Room, forcing her to betray another girl who then gets killed in the forest. Now, when Yelena experiences a meltdown, Alexi is the one who pulls her up and gives her the motivational speech that basically sums up the message of the movie. Lena, when I look at you, I don't see your mistakes. That's why we need each other.

Okay, that was really good. So in the end, the Thunderbolts understand that they cannot beat the void in a fight. The only way to stop that darkness is for Bob to overcome his own void, meaning his traumas. Even when the void talks, it's like he's giving voice to all of Bob's depression and insecurity, representing how Bob is literally in a war with his own depression. I only remember feeling completely alone. empty out, just endless nothingness. But Bob beats the void after seeing that he is not alone,

and he's got a family with the Thunderbolts. A very dysfunctional family, but it's better than nothing, right? So the void is defeated with the power of friendship. Hey, now look, before you hate on what the MCU did with the Century, here's the thing. This is all very comic book accurate. The Century is one of the most powerful beings in the universe, and there are very few people who can beat him in a fight, especially when he enters void mode.

But Century's biggest weakness is his fragile mental. state. The more unstable he becomes mentally, the less in control he becomes, and this is how he is usually defeated. So, while some of you might say that the Thunderbolts beat up the void with a group hug, this is a powerful message about mental illness. People who suffer from depression usually try to hide it from others. They are crushed by the weight of it, alone, in an unwinnable fight. But with the help of others, friends in therapy, there is a way to overcome depression. We can't stop him alone. No one can. But we can find a way. together. So in the end, Bob is back in control. But keep in mind that Bob's mental illness

isn't just magically cured. This isn't Spider-Man No Way Home where Peter fixes mental illness with science. Yes, science! He is still dealing with his trauma, so the void is still inside of him. And like Bob says in the post-credit scene, he fears that if he uses his powers as the century, void will be unleashed again. Now, before we explain that massive post-credit scene of what it means for the Century and Doomsday, let's talk about the new offenders reveal. So, After the final battle, the Thunderbolts go after Valentina at the watchtower. But she tricks them and they walk straight into a press conference and Valentina declares them as the new superhero team she was planning to assemble all along.

The New Avengers. She was obviously planning on presenting the century, but this way she gets off the hook for all the messed up stuff she did in the movie. Well, not really, because Yelena makes sure to tell her that they own her now. I own you. So, we finally have a new team of Avengers in the MCU. And honestly, the new Avengers is something that needed to happen back in phase four. Because we really needed the new Avengers to assemble earlier in this saga to establish

the team and their dynamics. Anyways, this ending is straight out of the comics. At the end of the Civil War storyline in the comics, Iron Man holds a press conference revealing a new team of Avengers who were all government approved, and they were called the Mighty Avengers. And in a different story, the Thunderbolts become the Dark Avengers. You see, Norman Osborne was the leader of the Thunderbolts at the time, and then he transformed the Thunderbolts into the Dark Avengers, an official government-approved team. Notice the pattern? We even hear Yelaina saying in the post-credit scene

that the government approved of them being the New Avengers. And that is why the naming is a bit strange, because the circumstances under which the New Avengers assemble in the comics are very different from the movie. You see, the original Avengers disassembled after Wanda wrecks reality for a little bit. Sometime later, Steve Rogers assembled the New Avengers, and the thing about the New Avengers is that over the years, they considered themselves as the true Avengers,

adhering to the ideas in spirit the team represented originally. Like, for example, they were opposed to the Superhero Registration Act during the events of Civil War, and they always rejected government supervision. So it would have made a tiny bit more sense of Sam Wilson assembled the new Avengers, and the Thunderbolts would have been the Mighty Avengers. Yeah, how many Avengers teams are out there anyways? Well, there's actually quite a lot. But since the Thunderbolts become the New Avengers, it's possible that when Sam finally assembles the team,

they will simply be called the Avengers. Totally not going to be confusing. That man's an imposter. That man is the imposter. So now let's talk about the mid-credit scene. So we see Red Guardian in a supermarket trying to convince a lady in a shop to buy a Wheaties box that actually has the new offenders on the cover. So Alexi being Alexi is awkwardly proud that he's on the box cover because he's obsessed with his own glory and fame.

And this is, of course, a call back to earlier in the movie when the Red Guardian talks about the Thunderbolts really making it when they get their own Wheaties box. This team can be the heroes on the Wheaties Box with a little giddy part. Or why is that such a big deal for him? Well, if you didn't know, the Wheaties cereal has had a long history of featuring athletes on their boxes. There is a certain prestige and a sign of excellence when you get your own Wheaties box. Because they're advertised as really healthy cereal, even using the slogan, Breakfast of Champions. Ew, why is Courtney Love on the Wheaties box?

So, the fact that the New Avengers are on a Wheaties box is an indication that the public has accepted this team as the New Avengers. They love me. Although, the post-credit scene implies otherwise. because apparently their reputation isn't that great. Now, this scene is obviously meant to be a fun gag. However, there is an interesting underlying idea to this scene. The new vendors are formed as a marketing ploy by Valentina, and she and the other corporations are creating superhero merchandise

and name brand products to make the most profit possible off of superheroes. And this is a troubling idea that has been coming up since endgame. Smell like a king because you're worthy. Old Spice Where big companies are capitalizing on superheroes Yeah, that's just shameful when people take advantage of a fandom just to make a quick buck I know, buddy, it's terrible So did you guys see this thing shirt at our merch store in the style of John Carpenter is The Thing?

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Anyways, not only does Alexi try to convince people to buy new Avengers Wheaties, but in the post-credit scene, he's wearing a jumpsuit that is adorned with corporate sponsorship. Merchandising, merchandising! So we might actually see this happen where we kind of get a universe in the MCU that's more like the boys,

where superheroes become a commodity. When its new savior descends, all those casualties will be forgotten. Now, he also created these matching outfits for the team so they could capitalize on their brand, but also to fight Sam Wilson's lawsuit. Right, why is Sam Wilson searing them? Okay, so this brings us to the post-credit scene, and there is a lot to explain here. But finally, guys, a good MCU post-credit scene that actually sets up the next movie we're going to watch. I feel like this scene actually matters.

So the scene takes place 14 months after the new Avengers are formed. So first of all, it turns out that Sam is suing the new Avengers for copyright infringement. So according to Yelena, they're the New Avengers and the government approves it. But Sam is Captain America and in Brave New World, he was planning to assemble his own Avengers team. The world needs the Avengers. Although apparently, he didn't build his own team yet. Keep in mind that Brave New World takes place a few months before the Thunderbolts. And with the 14-month time jump, I'm really starting to question Sam's leadership

because, you know, what's taking him so long? Take your time. Make your time to the side. We have about 10 seconds. It's kind of weird that Sam is suing the new offenders because, you know, he and Bucky are friends. But it's also hilarious in a way since they have this whole frenemy thing going on.

Did your speech riders help you with that? They did, yeah, the ending a little bit. Did you like it? No, it was good. Solid B-plus. Emotional. Very. I felt it.

But just enough. Although, I do know a really good lawyer who could help. And the most hilarious moment of this scene is Alexi trying to beat the lawsuit by renaming them to the new Avengers. The revenges. Revenges. Now, Yelena mentioned something interesting here. She talks about a crisis that is happening in space. And we actually don't know what that crisis is. But we get a hint when the fun is cut short when an extra-dimensional ship arrives in outer space. And this is the Fantastic Four ship.

We see their logo and we hear the Fantastic Four theme from all the First Steps trailers. What does that even mean? How the Fantastic Four get there? Is this about Avengers Tomsday? That's exactly what this is. So the Fantastic Four in the MCU are actually from another universe. This is a retro futuristic world where it looks like it's in the 1960s, but they have futuristic tech. And in first steps, the Fantastic Four will have to save their world from Galactus, the devour of worlds who mark their world for death. So this post-credit scene might have just spoiled a little bit of first-state. steps because maybe Galactus will eat the Fantastic Four's world and they will escape into the

multiverse and end up in Earth 616. That's the universe where the main MCU continuity takes place. In fact, we believe that this scene isn't just a post-credit scene for this movie, but this scene was actually filmed for Avengers Doomsday. Just like how the post-credit scene from Ant Man was actually a scene in Captain America Civil War. So let's explain what the arrival of the Fantastic Four means for Doomsday. Just before the ship appears, Yelaina mentions that there is a big space crisis happening. And we believe that this space crisis is happening because of the incursions. An incursion occurs when the boundary between two universes erodes and they collide, destroying one or both entirely. Avengers Doomsday and Secret Wars will be adapting the 2015 story from

the comics called Secret Wars. In this story, universes were colliding and destroying each other because of the incursions. And this led to a multiversal war. But why is the multiverse fighting? Well, because essentially each world had to protect their reality and destroy others to preserve their own universe. And the big threat to the multiverse were these incursions that could eventually end every single reality. The results of which could cause a chain reaction to what unravel the very fabric of the spacetime continuum and destroy the entire universe. And we believe that something like this will happen in Doomsday? I mean, the MCU pretty much keeps hinting that the multiversal war is going to happen. Do you think this is the only world?

We'll see what happens when you have to protect this place. from the others. Robert Downey Jr. is Dr. Doom, and he is from another universe, possibly the same universe that the Fantastic Four are coming from. And with the arrival of the Fantastic Four and the returning X-Men characters, this multiversal war is about to start. So the space crisis might be an indication that the incursions are already happening all over the multiverse.

The barriers between realities are starting to collapse, and it's causing chaos in space time. But the big question here is what's up with the Fantastic Four arriving and then Marvel just spoiled the ending of first steps. So, in the recent trailer, Reed Richard says, It's my fault. I stretched the bounds of space. And they hurt.

And we see him working on a bunch of theories about wormholes in the multiverse. So we believe that whatever Reid did, he triggered an incursion. And this might be because he is exploring the multiverse, and every time somebody messes with the multiverse, it can trigger an incursion. But right? Well, in the comics, Reed was always obsessed with fixing everything with science. So at one point, he creates this bridge portal that allows him to witness alternate timelines. This eventually leads him to meet his variants who formed a multiversal alliance called the Council of Reeds.

And this story sets up the multiversal conflict that happens later in Secret Wars. Or it might be because Sue is pregnant. You're late? I just said that. Are you pregnant? What? You see, Reed and Sue's son in the comics is Franklin Richards. And he's one of the most powerful beings in the multiverse.

He can warp reality at will. and even create universes. A super baby. So Franklin might be a living incursion, and his very existence is a disturbance in the universe that attracts Galactus. So whatever triggers an incursion in first steps, we think this is why Galactus is coming.

Your planet is now marked for death. Usually in the comics, Galactus consumes worlds in his own universe, and this is to keep the cosmic balance, because Galactus maintains the ecosystem of his universe. But with first steps being so heavily connected to the multiverse, I don't think that Marvel will just do the traditional Galactus story. Instead, our theory is that Galactus is an extra-dimensional being who travels between universes

and eats worlds that are threatening the multiverse. I request elaboration. So, this is how we see the multiverse rules working in first steps and doomsday. When an incursion is triggered, two worlds collide. Right, it's two worlds. The world that triggered the incursion and another world that is connected in some multiversal way. And this happens because spacetime warps reality and smashes. the two worlds from different universes into each other.

Anybody knows you got to keep your worlds apart. Like in the comics, if both worlds destroy each other, then the universes are erased from existence. But if one of the Earth is destroyed during the incursion, then the other world and both universes survive. And in the comics, in a story called Time Runs Out, this crisis created this trolley problem for the heroes. They had to choose between protecting their world

or destroying other worlds to save their reality. In the grand calculus of the multiverse, Their sacrifice means infinitely more than their lives. And our theory is that Galactus' job is to stop incursions and preserve the natural law of the multiverse. So he eats the worlds that trigger incursions, because if that incursion spirals out of control, the entire multiverse could collapse. So this could mean that in first steps, Galactus will consume the Fantastic Four's world and they will escape into the multiverse and end up in Earth 616. And then they will warn the other heroes about what is happening in the multiverse. Middle Earth stands upon the brink of destruction.

None can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Or maybe the MCU is gaslighting us and the Fantastic Force world is fine and somehow they stopped Galactus. Also, if Franklin is an incursion, maybe the Fantastic Force universe is not destroyed and they simply choose to leave the universe with Franklin so they won't endanger their home dimension. But their encounter with the World Eater forces them to take action and warn other worlds about the impending Doom of the Multiverse. And speaking of Doom, here's how he could fit into all of this. Yeah, sir, what's he up to? Well, Dr. Doom is not the kind of guy who sits on his hands and leaves

his fate to chance. In the comics, when Doom discovered what is happening with the incursions, he worked to stop the end of everything, and eventually he became a multiversal god who created his own universe after the multiverse died. It's a long story, but we can see Doom doing the same thing in Avengers Doomsday. He will discover what is happening in the multiverse, and after the Fantastic Four encounter Galactus, he will work on a plane. He will work on a plane, to save the multiverse by becoming a god and ruling it. Do you really think fate turned us into gods so we could refuse these gifts? Victor, you always thought you were a god.

And this is Doom's whole thing in the comics. He wants to rule the world because he believes it will be better with him in charge because he is better and smarter than everyone. From his point of view, the only way to stop the crisis in the multiverse is if he rules over the whole thing. So in Avengers Doomsday, we see the Fantastic Four arriving to warn the Avengers about Doom, Galactus, and the incursions. And with the X-Men coming from another universe, we believe that we will see worlds colliding, just like in the comics. And when that fight starts, you just know that Bob is going to have no choice but to join the fight as the Century. And when that happens, the Void might take over again during all the chaos and become a catastrophic detriment for the heroes in this upcoming multiversal war.

I mean, would it be too much to ask for Century versus Galactus and Doomsday? In fact, if the Void goes on a rampage and fights everyone, this might allow Doom to use all the chaos to become a god, and create battle world. That is the new universe he creates in Secret Wars, the only reality that existed after the multiverse died. So guys, that is everything that happens in this massive ending, but we're going to explore so much more about the movie and the post-credit scene in upcoming videos. I just got to say the Thunderbolts is freaking amazing. I cannot stress enough how much I loved this movie. And now I am really excited for what's coming next in the MCU, and we've got a lot of theories about that that we're going to break down over the next week or so.

So a big shout out to Paveltee, who wrote and edited this video. You can find his links below. what you thought about the Thunderbolts and are free to join Discord server, at me on any of the social media platforms or just down in the comments below. And if it's your first time here, please subscribe and smash that bell for alerts. For Screen Crush, I'm Ryan Erie.