Thunderbolts* 2 Rumors Point to a New Roster — and Bucky’s Doomsday Fate Might Be Why

Marvel Studios hasn’t announced Thunderbolts* 2. But over the past 48 hours, the insider chatter around a sequel got a lot more specific — a rebuilt roster, Bullseye in the mix — and it lines up neatly with the loudest Avengers: Doomsday rumor of the year: that Bucky Barnes doesn’t make it out alive.

To be clear up top: everything below is unconfirmed. Here’s what’s being reported, who’s reporting it, and how the pieces fit.

Is Thunderbolts* 2 actually happening?

Officially, no — not yet. Marvel hasn’t announced a sequel to Thunderbolts*, which hit theaters May 2, 2025.

Unofficially, the noise has been building all year. In a Cosmic Circus Q&A this June, insider Alex Perez said a continuation was possible, with a catch: “I’m not sure it will be the same team,” per SuperHeroHype. A few weeks later, he put Thunderbolts 2 on a list of projects Marvel is focused on, alongside Black Panther 3, Shang-Chi 2, Spider-Man 5, the X-Men reboot, Blade and Midnight Sons.

This week, that “different team” idea got names attached.

The new-roster rumors: Bullseye, Songbird and (maybe) Punisher

In his October Q&A, Perez was asked whether Bullseye would join the new Thunderbolts lineup. His answer, as reported by SuperHeroHype: “…Yes.”

That would be Wilson Bethel’s Benjamin Poindexter from Daredevil: Born Again — a killer with zero interest in redemption, which is kind of the point. The original comics Thunderbolts were villains pretending to be heroes under Baron Zemo, and a Bullseye-anchored team would swing the MCU version back toward that idea. Perez also said back in December 2025 that the team would be heading back into morally gray territory rather than staying straightforward heroes. Bullseye is about as gray as Marvel gets.

A second, less established X account, MyTimeToShineHello, claims the sequel introduces a new team featuring Bullseye and Songbird, with Yelena and Sam Wilson leading the Avengers in the next saga. SuperHeroHype also attributes a Punisher claim to the same account — but the post it quotes doesn’t mention Frank Castle, so treat Jon Bernthal’s involvement as unclear even by rumor standards.

Why the team might need replacing: the Bucky question

Here’s where it connects. For months, the loudest Avengers: Doomsday rumor has been that one of the New Avengers dies — permanently. Several insiders have narrowed that to the same name.

• The Beyond Reporter posted, then deleted, that a New Avenger would die for good in Doomsday. Fans and other insiders quickly zeroed in on Bucky.
• James Mack named Bucky Barnes specifically earlier this month.
• A newer insider claim says Doctor Doom is the one who kills him.

The circumstantial case people keep pointing to: Sebastian Stan is part of Matt Reeves’ The Batman: Part II, now filming for an October 2027 release (more on the Harvey Dent question here). A recent comment from Stan about Doomsday that fans read as “heartbreaking” only added fuel.

But the counter-case is real, too. Stan has talked about other Bucky stories he’d like to tell — including ones that could be set in the past — and he’s on Marvel’s official Doomsday cast list. Bucky has also “died” in the MCU twice already, which is why critics like ScreenRant argue a third time would be a waste.

If Bucky does go down in Doomsday, a rebuilt Thunderbolts team in a sequel stops looking like a stray rumor and starts looking like the logical next move.

Meanwhile, in the comics

The timing is almost funny. Comics Bucky died in Avengers: Armageddon, came back to life in issue #5 — face to face with the original Nick Fury — and now headlines Immortal Soldiers #1, a one-shot from Chip Zdarsky and Christian Rosado announced at Marvel’s House of Ideas panel at New York Comic Con. Ben Harvey’s main cover puts Bucky’s metal arm breaking out of his own grave. It lands in January. Whatever happens on screen, Marvel clearly isn’t done with him on the page.

The bottom line

Thunderbolts* earned roughly $382 million worldwide on a reported $180 million budget — soft by Marvel standards, but the critical and fan response gave the team a second life in Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Whether that becomes a true sequel, and who’s still standing to star in it, gets a lot clearer on Dec. 18. In the meantime, here’s who Marvel still hasn’t confirmed for Doomsday.

Rumors and insider reports are unconfirmed. The Nerd Wire will update this story if Marvel Studios announces anything official.