Though there are a lot of interesting dynamics at play in Marvel’s Thunderbolts*, perhaps the most intriguing element of the film is its inclusion of David Harbour’s Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian and Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova. The Marvel Cinematic Universe isn’t a stranger to father-daughter team-ups; this duo previously appeared in Black Widow, and Scott Lang/Ant-Man suited up alongside his daughter Cᴀssie in Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania.

Even so, the strained relationship between Alexei and Yelena is very different from how families are usually shown in Marvel projects. The two, along with Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Melina Vostokoff, formed a strange adoptive family in Black Widow after spending years under deep cover. Since then, Natasha has sacrificed herself to save the universe in Avengers: Endgame, and only Yelena’s reaction to the loss has been shown onscreen. To take this already unusual relationship and drop it into a team setting will likely create a dynamic that the MCU hasn’t done before.

Speaking with Screen Rant’s Joe Deckelmeier, Harbour addressed Alexei and Yelena’s relationship and how it affects his story in Thunderbolts*:

ScreenRant: David, [Director] Jake Schreier mentioned that there are a lot of emotional ties to Black Widow for Red Guardian and Yelena. How important was it for you to honor that found family dynamic while still showing how much Alexei has changed through the years? Where are Alexei and Yelena at the start of the film?

David Harbour: Yeah, it was really important. Showing up, it was one of the things that would be able to ground me in the movie. I was very excited to work with Wyatt, Sebastian, and Hannah, but I knew that this relationship with Yelena was going to be the core for him.

When they start out, Alexei’s in a very bad place and [so is], I think, the dynamic between the two of them. What’s destroyed both of them is Natasha’s death, which they both can’t process in their own ways. When you lose a central figure in a family, sometimes the family members react in very unique, specific ways – and sometimes the family itself falls apart, and that’s what’s happened here. But the needs are still there, and the love is still there, and the emotions are still there.

Alexei is haunted by his failure and is obsessed with the idea of some kind of success that won’t ultimately save him. What will save him is some kind of love with his found family and some kind of vulnerability with other people, which he can’t seem to see. So, we start in a very bad place, and he’s quickly confronted with how he needs to change.

What David Harbour’s Comments About Red Guardian’s Arc In Thunderbolts* Mean

Alexei Blames Himself For His Family Falling Apart

Yelena and Alexei have a complicated past; for the early years of her life, she believed he was her father, only for her world to shatter when it was all revealed to be an undercover mission. Though to him it was part of their role as spies, it was abandonment to Yelena, who was then forced to become a Black Widow before eventually breaking free. Over the course of Black Widow, it becomes apparent that Alexei did love both Yelena and Natasha in his own detached way, and along with Melina, they set about freeing the other Black Widows.

After the events of Avengers: Endgame, Yelena pursued Clint Barton out of a misguided belief he was responsible for her sister’s death, though she made her peace with him. Alexei has not yet been seen between the events of Black Widow and Thunderbolts*, but it’s clear that the adoptive father and daughter have parted ways again.

Harbour previously chimed in on this complicated dynamic and how it factors into Thunderbolts*, explaining: “There’s a lot of details that the director, Jake, has gone into the great care of what their life was like in the Midwest when they were doing all that spy stuff. And then, a lot of that comes up in really fun, interesting, beautiful ways, which, like in the Black Widow movie came up with that song, American Pie. And there’s just a lot of complexity between me and Florence’s character, which I love.“

Our Take On David Harbour’s Comments About Red Guardian’s Arc In Thunderbolts*

Yelena And Alexei Both Need To Grieve Natasha

Given Harbour’s statements, it’s safe to say Alexei’s relationship with Yelena will remain a cornerstone of his development in Thunderbolts*. As a result, the film will likely touch on how Natasha’s death drove the family apart, something made even more tragic by the years they have already spent separated. Per Harbour, Alexei is “haunted” by his grief, and we already know that Yelena suffered from hers as well. Perhaps the film will use this shared loss as the means through which they bond again.

Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see how Yelena and Alexei fare in Thunderbolts*. Harbour might have summarized their dynamic best: “Sometimes we don’t get to choose the people that complete us.“

Upcoming MCU Movies

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  Thunderbolts*

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  May 2, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  The Fantastic Four: First Steps

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  July 25, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Doomsday

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  May 1, 2026
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  July 31, 2026
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Secret Wars

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  May 7, 2027
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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