Harrison Ford is reportedly joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe as “Thunderbolt” Ross, a role originally played by the late William Hurt.
Following rumors that Marvel Studios wanted Ford to take over the role of Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross, The Hot Mic With John Rocha and Jeff Sneider and Slashfilm have confirmed that the actor has in fact closed a deal to play Ross in two upcoming MCU films.
Ford will first be seen as “Thunderbolt” Ross in Captain America: New World Order before returning for Thunderbolts. Both films are currently slated to open in theaters in 2024.
“Thunderbolt” Ross has been around in the MCU since its very inception, appearing in the franchise’s second film, The Incredible Hulk (2008), played by Hurt. After a lengthy absence, Hurt returned to the role in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War and continued to play the character for three more films before his death in 2022: Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019) and Black Widow (2021).
Now the rumor going around is that Marvel wanted to announce Ford as the new “Thunderbolt” Ross at D23 in September, but Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy was having none of that. She reportedly “put her foot down” and stopped any sort of casting announcement because she wanted the focus surrounding Ford to be on Indiana Jones 5 instead of the MCU.
Marvel has of course not confirmed the casting at this time, but with both films set to begin filming in 2023, it’s only a matter of time before we see Ford rocking a moustache and barking orders.
Captain America: New World Order opens in theaters on May 3, 2024, followed by Thunderbolts on July 26, 2024.
What do you think of Harrison Ford replacing William Hurt as “Thunderbolt” Ross? Do you think he’ll turn into Red Hulk? How long before Ford starts saying, “I don’t care,” when someone asks him which superhero he thinks would win in a fight against the Hulk?
