"It Really Felt Like The Movie Seemed Just A Little Bloodless:" Thunderbolts* Director Reveals The Reason For *That* Shocking Death

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Thunderbolts*

Director Jake Schreier explains why Thunderbolts* killed off the MCU’s Taskmaster so early. Thunderbolts* brings back several MCU anti-heroes and transforms them into full-fledged heroes. Yelena Belova, Alexei Shostakov, John Walker, Ava Starr, and Bucky Barnes turn their public image around and become the New Avengers in Thunderbolts*‘ ending. Meanwhile, Antonia Dreykov a.k.a. Taskmaster isn’t so lucky, as Ghost kills her before everyone realizes Valentina Allegra de Fontaine sent them all to kill each other.

In an interview with EW, Thunderbolts* director Jake Schreier addresses Taskmaster’s abrupt death. Schreier reveals that Olga Kurylenko’s Antonia Dreykov originally had a bigger role in Thunderbolts*, but the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes allowed him to reconsider the character. In order to raise the stakes for the rest of the characters, Schreier decided to eliminate Taskmaster quickly and violently. Read Jake Schreier’s full comments below:

“Coming out of the strike, we were about to shoot, and we got shut down, and it gave us some time to step back from the movie. And when we all got back in the room, once the strike was over, and we were thinking about how to improve it, it really felt like the movie seemed just a little bloodless. For who these characters are, it should live up to those movies that have attention to ’em, where you really don’t know who’s going to survive it. I know that’s tricky in today’s era where things get out before movies, but within the context of the film, it felt like we needed to take a swing like that so that you didn’t really know who was going to make it, and also so that it was clear that it could have been any one of them.

The decision to do it when we did it, we went through a lot of different versions of that, and we thought very carefully about it, and it felt like, while it would’ve been very nice — and Olga is a wonderful actress — to have her on the team for longer, that death would’ve kind of reverberated a lot harder and made it harder to find our tonal balance if it had happened later in the film. And it would’ve occupied such a kind of more emotional space that would’ve stepped on what we really need to be building. And we have so little narrative real estate to do it, which is the connection between Yelena and Bob, and the movie is really going to hinge on that. And so, in order to keep our tone and to build that team together, it actually felt best, even if it feels a little cold-blooded, to have that happen early.”

What Jake Schreier’s Taskmaster Comments Mean For Thunderbolts*

Thunderbolts* Sacrificed Taskmaster To Up the Ante

Olga Kurylenko's Antonia Dreykov a.k.a. Taskmaster wears her mask in Thunderbolts_

It was pretty obvious from the start that Taskmaster wouldn’t survive too long into Thunderbolts*‘ plot, as Olga Kurylenko is remarkably absent from Thunderbolts*‘ marketing. Unfortunately for Antonia Dreykov, her MCU journey needed to meet a premature end in order to establish the stakes for the rest of the team, who succeed in their battle against Bob’s Void alter ego and remain a team long after defeating it, as shown by Thunderbolts*‘ post-credits scene. Once Taskmaster dies, the Thunderbolts understand any of them could meet a similar fate at any moment.

Death is a flexible concept in the MCU, as many of the characters who’ve died throughout the years have returned one way or another. Still, ᴅᴇᴀᴅ characters like Avengers: Age of Ultron‘s Quicksilver, The Avengers‘ Phil Coulson, and Avengers: Infinity War‘s Gamora have made an impact on other characters. In Thunderbolts*, Taskmaster’s death weighs on Ghost’s conscience, and it makes her rethink her stance on teamwork. It also reinforces Yelena Belova’s approach to her own tragic memories, and it may have played a role in Yelena’s decision to face her trauma in the Void.

Our Take On Jake Schreier’s Taskmaster Comments

Taskmaster Died Without Leaving A Mark

Sadly, Taskmaster didn’t receive enough chances to shine on the big screen. Black Widow turned the famously extroverted Taskmaster into a stiff killing machine, and Thunderbolts* only dropped one or two references to Antonia Dreykov’s origins. Taskmaster’s copycat abilities gave her potential to be an incredibly powerful and dynamic anti-hero, but Thunderbolts* instead employed her as disposable cannon fodder. After Thunderbolts*, the MCU is unlikely to revisit Taskmaster anytime soon, though it’s possible that Marvel Comics’ original Taskmaster, Anthony Masters, will eventually replace Antonia Dreykov.

Source: EW