‘Thunderbolts*’ Could Be Coming to Disney+ in a Hurry

The window between theatrical release and home video is a lot smaller than it used to be. These days, it’s typically just a matter of months, if not less — a far cry from decades past, when it often took more than a year for a movie to make its way from the big screen to cable or VHS. Still, any amount of time can feel like an eternity when you’re eager to get the thing you’re waiting for, so MCU fans will doubtless be excited to learn that Thunderbolts* is rumored to be right around the corner from making its Disney+ debut.

The news comes courtesy of Reddit, where one sharp-eyed poster shared a screenshot from a Greek Disney+ ad that displays an August 27 premiere date for the movie. Although it was obviously broadcast in another country, as one commenter pointed out, Disney isn’t historically in the habit of staggering this type of release date for its major features. And Thunderbolts* definitely qualifies as a major release: Although it was ultimately regarded as something of a box office disappointment after grossing roughly $382 million against its $180 million budget and significant additional marketing costs, it was also one of the most positively received installments in the MCU since the glory days of the Infinity Saga, with critics and audiences both offering enthusiastic thumbs up.

Why Is ‘Thunderbolts*’ Coming to Disney+ Now?

Walt Disney Studios

The rumored August 27 Disney+ drop comes several weeks after Thunderbolts* started its home video journey. The film became available for digital rent or purchase on July 1, and a Blu-ray release followed on July 29. Now that the studio’s had these extra chances to recoup some of the sunken costs that went along with promoting a picture whose losses reportedly ran into the millions, it’s time for Disney+ subscribers to have their chance to watch without paying extra. And while it may feel like it’s taken a while for Thunderbolts* to reach this step, it’s really very much in line with the window Disney’s followed for other recent releases, which falls squarely within the three-to-four-month range.

Viewers seeing Thunderbolts* for the first time won’t just be enjoying a creative rebound for Marvel — they’ll be bearing witness to a significant new chapter in the long-running blockbuster saga that is the MCU, one that dates back to the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. During that show, fans got their first glimpse of CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who spent years laying the groundwork for a new superpowered team that could step up in the vacuum created when the Avengers scattered after Endgame — and, of course, help her level up her own power base within the United States government. Naturally, the group’s mission is quite a bit more dangerous (and duplicitous) than they’re initially led to believe. We won’t spoil the rest (even though Marvel did a pretty good job of spoiling it themselves); suffice it to say that by the time the end credits roll, the MCU’s superhero landscape looks very different.