Florence Pugh Describes ‘Thunderbolts*’ As “Badass Indie, A24-Feeling Assassin Movie”

deadline.com:

Amid a trailer highlighting the indie powerhouses behind Marvel‘s forthcoming Thunderbolts*, star Florence Pugh — herself a born and bred indie darling of Midsommar fame — described the action flick as more akin to an “A24-feeling” picture.

Speaking to Empire in a recent interview, the actress — who will reprise her role as Natasha Romanoff’s sister, Yelena, the highly trained former assassin first introduced in Black Widow — said the film, about a group of misfits not really giving the Avengers a run for their money, has an entirely different style from typical MCU fare. “It ended up becoming this quite badass indie, A24-feeling assassin movie with Marvel superheroes,” she noted.

Due in theaters May 2, the latest addition to the sprawling Disney-powered franchise is helmed by Jake Schreier, who shared an Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series or Anthology for directing six episodes of A24/Netflix’s hit Beef, the all-cylinders-firing rage-filled dark comedy starring Ali Wong and Steven Yeun. “There’s a certain amount of that Beef tone in it, that does feel different,” he told the magazine. “There’s an emotional darkness that we brought to this that is resonant, but doesn’t come at the expense of comedy.” The teaser, dropped March 7, is titled “Absolute Cinema,” referencing a meme/reaction image born out of Martin Scorsese’s words.

The veteran filmmaker has been vocally critical of Marvel, having dragged the studio in the past for producing what he deems as “audiovisual entertainment” bereft of “risk.” In a New York Times essay, he defended his statement that he views those projects as “closer to theme parks than they are to movies.” “What’s not there is revelation, mystery or genuine emotional danger.