Thunderbolts* isn't really like an indie film, director emphasises

But speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, director Jake Schreier explained that those comparisons are probably best taken with a pinch of salt.

"I mean, look, I don't... we had resources for sure," he explained. "We're not an independent film. It is Marvel. I know that…we get it!"

Still, he did further explain that Marvel chief Kevin Feige has given him express instructions to make something a little different to the franchise's usual output, by focusing on practical effects and including some more intimate character moments.

"He knew that I had, you know, on shows like Kidding, or in some of the music videos that I've done, I've done a lot of kind of practical transitions and practical effects," he said.

"I think that with these characters, and if you're telling this very, kind of, smaller human story that eventually gets big, you want the filmmaking to line up with that. You want to feel like they're really there.

"You want to feel how tactile that is for them in the action. You want to see them do some of their stunts.

He continued: "And I should say, because in the visual effects community, it's frustrating when everyone goes ahead and says, 'We did it all in camera', and it's like, we didn't.

"We did a lot of incredible visual effects in this film. But Jake Morrison, our wonderful visual effects supervisor, it was his idea that, if you could get 60 per cent of it in camera, and then you're adding on to that. It only makes those effects feel better.

"And it's less about this kind of divide of 'it's all real', or 'it's all effects', and more, like, 'how can we get all of these things to work together and be really smart about [it]?' We built massive sets that we then also extended in the background, but so much of what they're interacting with and what's behind their heads – that's real.

"And you can just feel it... When you're having this incredibly emotional moment between David [Harbour] and Florence [Pugh], you don't want to be looking at the edges on their heads in the background not lining up. So we really kind of tried to figure out just the smartest way to make it feel real in the moments that needed to feel real."

Whatever the approach taken by Schrier, it seems to have worked – the film has received mostly positive reviews from critics to make it the most acclaimed MCU entry in a number of years, currently sitting on 88 per cent on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Meanwhile, our own RadioTimes.com review of the film awarded it four stars, praising the performance of Florence Pugh and the chemistry between the cast in what we described as an "emotional return to form" for the franchise.

Thunderbolts is released in UK cinemas on Thursday 1st May 2025.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.