Thunderbolt

Yelena Belova sneaks into a secret lab to retrieve research and artifacts for the OXE Group under Valentina De Fontaine's orders. She fights guards and manages to obtain the items before destroying the lab to eliminate evidence of Project Sentry. She then reports her success back to Valentina.

In Washington, Valentina is on trial for her secret operations, including the Red Hulk incident. She defends her actions by highlighting the absence of the Avengers and justifying her controversial methods, with her assistant Mel observing the proceedings.

Yelena visits her former ally Alexei Shostakov, the Red Guardian, at his home. She confesses her disillusionment with her past work and the weight of Natasha's death, leading her to contact Valentina for her next assignment.

Yelena is tasked by Valentina to eliminate Ava Starr, Ghost. At The Vault, Yelena is ambushed by U.S. Agent John Walker and fights alongside other operatives. During the chaos, Ghost reappears and kills Taskmaster, and the survivors discover Valentina's plan to cover her tracks with the artifacts.

Yelena experiences a memory of her first test in the Red Room, where she was forced to execute a girl named Anya. This traumatic flashback is triggered by contact with Bob Reynolds, whom she and others are trying to escape from The Vault.

Yelena, Walker, Ghost, and Bob attempt to escape The Vault by working together. They use a coordinated climbing method to reach the top, during which Walker has a painful memory of personal failure, revealing his insecurities.

Valentina hosts a gala attended by Bucky Barnes, who discusses her actions with Mel. Mel reports her findings about Valentina's targets and plans, and later encourages Bucky to testify against her. Valentina cleverly spins her narrative to the public as a protective action.

Valentina sends mercenaries to recover The Vault artifacts and eliminate Yelena, Walker, and Ghost. During the chaos, Bob reveals his Sentry powers and flies into the sky, but passes out at high altitude, crashing back down into The Vault.

Bucky and Yelena track Valentina’s plans to capture Bob, who she manipulates into embracing his god-like powers. Valentina sees her childhood trauma through Bob’s mind, reinforcing her own motivations for control.

The team of anti-heroes, dubbed the Thunderbolts, fight Valentina’s forces at her Watchtower. Sentry, now controlled by Bob, overpowers them, ripping off Bucky’s arm, and becomes a threat to Valentina herself until Mel intervenes with a killswitch.

Sentry, losing control, transforms into The Void, unleashing chaos across New York City by turning citizens into shadows. Yelena and the team rally to enter The Void’s realm to confront and calm Bob’s darker alter ego.

Inside The Void, Yelena and the team help Bob face his trauma and defeat his dark counterpart through a heartfelt group hug, restoring the city’s citizens and ending The Void’s reign of darkness.

With The Void defeated, Valentina holds a press conference claiming she assembled the team as the next Avengers, giving her a public victory while secretly planning her future manipulations.

Yelena, now sober and motivated, is approached by Alexei at a supermarket, humorously featured on a Wheaties box. Meanwhile, the team’s efforts are recognized as a partial success, fading into the background of future threats.

Eighteen months later, the new Avengers are publicly contentious, with ongoing legal and public scrutiny over their role. A mysterious spacecraft marked with a large '4' enters Earth's atmosphere, hinting at future conflicts involving cosmic forces.