After years of mysterious appearances in the MCU included The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Black WidowAND Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Julia Louis-DreyfusCountess Valentina Allegra de Fontaine will finally reveal all her plans in Marvel’s Lightning*and the actor promises it will be worth the wait.
Louis-Dreyfus spoke to Entertainment Weekly about how the upcoming anti-hero/villain team film compares to his previous cameos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, saying:
“It’s a completely different beast. This movie is a real opportunity for me to really explore Val’s character. You’ll really learn what she’s made of and a lot of her backstory as well. She’s there to win.”
THE Seinfeld AND Veep The star had no idea where she would end up when she agreed to play this character, but once she learned what happens in this film, she got really excited.
“You will see his whole plan come to fruition,” he confirms with a smile. “It’s full of mystery and there are some twists that you don’t expect, which are the best. There’s a lot of suspense, which is very interesting.”
Since Val first arrived The Falcon and the Winter Soldier to recruit John Walker’s unwary US agent (Wyatt Russell) for vague purposes, he continued to gather more formidable and morally questionable fighters for his cause, including Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) at the end of Black Widow.
His last appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever revealed that she is now the head of the CIA, and with her new power, she created her ex-husband Everett Ross (Martin Freemann) to get himself arrested, proving that there is no line he won’t cross to get what he wants.
“His intentions are not necessarily pure,” Louis-Dreyfus says. “There’s the hero, there’s the anti-hero, there’s the villain… is there such a thing as an anti-villain?”
While Louis-Dreyfus says so Lightning won’t continue to explore Val’s relationship with Ross, fans will see in the comics some of her rich history that wasn’t seen on screen but that she finally brought to life.
“When I got this job, my husband gave me the first Marvel comic where his character was revealed,” the actor says as he displays the vintage comic on his desk.
“It’s the original, isn’t it great? But yes, some of his previous plans will be revealed and you will understand better why he acts the way he does.”
Lightning*which also features returning actors from the MCU Sebastiano Stan, Davide PortoAND Hannah John-Kamen along with franchise newcomers Lewis Pullman AND Geraldine Viswanathancenters on depressed assassin Yelena “along with the MCU’s least expected band of misfits,” according to the official logline.
And while Val seems to control each of the team’s mismatched members, Louis-Dreyfus says Val fits into the group more than he can imagine.
“She’s kind of a misfit in a weird way, even though she wouldn’t call herself that,” Louis-Dreyfus says. “She’s definitely someone who’s trying to prove herself. And in that sense, maybe she has something in common with the Thunderbolts… But that’s me saying that. I’m not sure she understands that.”
And while Val sees himself as a Nick Fury-type leader, he may not be as in control of the Thunderbolts as he thinks. “She’s always four steps ahead, or at least she thinks she is until she’s not,” Louis-Dreyfus jokes.
“All of these characters have worked for her in certain circumstances, so she fancies herself a bit like a puppet master, and she’s very power-hungry. She uses antiheroes. She definitely sees herself as the leader, the organizer of this group, but they’re not sure they see it as such.”
Following Marvel’s massive panel at Comic-Con 2024 in July, Louis-Dreyfus excitedly revealed to EW that he got to do his “fair share of ass-kicking” in the film. “I’ll be honest with you, it punches,” the actor says now. “But it’s an effective punch.”
While he can’t reveal who Val punches, he “loved” getting in on the action in that moment. “I wish I could have done more,” Louis-Dreyfus says. “I felt like a badass. And I was wearing a really cool black leather coat and it looked exactly right. It was phenomenal.”
As for the rest of the action, Louis-Dreyfus loves that there are more grounded fight scenes and stunts than fans might expect from a big MCU film.
“What’s great about this movie is that it has a certain grit that goes well with the comedy, and there’s not a lot of green screen,” he says. “It’s not these special effects that go on for hours. It’s people doing their own stunts. It has a rawness that I think audiences will really appreciate, a kind of return to the roots in that sense.”
That’s what Louis-Dreyfus is most excited for longtime Marvel fans to see from this film, but there are two in particular he’s thinking about.
“My kids — I have two boys who are young now and are big Marvel fanatics,” he says. “I’m just doing it to impress them. I can’t wait for them to see the movie. I think they’ll have a blast.”
She laughs and admits that she hasn’t told them a single secret or spoiler about the movie. But it wasn’t for lack of trying. “People tried to pull [spoilers] out of my mind, and I live in fear of saying something I shouldn’t.
“I’ve never been involved in a project like this where so much is kept under wraps. It’s like working for the CIA of show business. I’m so terrified of screwing up unintentionally. But so far I haven’t .”
Louis-Dreyfus once again shows his secret-keeping skills when asked what the mysterious asterisk in the film’s title means: “I Can’t Tell You.”
I can’t wait to see how this mystery film will end and what it will reveal.
Lightning will be released in theaters on May 2, 2025.
by Jessica Fisher
Source: Geek Tyrant
Lloyd Grunewald is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. He is a talented writer who focuses on bringing the latest entertainment-related news to his readers. With a deep understanding of the entertainment industry and a passion for writing, Lloyd delivers engaging articles that keep his readers informed and entertained.
