Daniel Brühl‘s Baron Helmut Zemo served as the primary antagonist in the 2016 MCU feature Captain America: Civil War and later appeared in the 2021 Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Zemo is the founder and the original leader of Thunderbolts in the comics. Although the MCU depiction of the group is significantly different from the source material, there is a lot of speculation on whether Zemo will appear in the movie. Brühl has previously spoken on the issue, and his recent comments are still very much spoilers-free.
Daniel Brühl plays coy about Baron Zemo’s possible cameo in Thunderbolts*
When Brühl was recently asked about his potential cameo appearance as Zemo in Thunderbolts* at the London Film Festival, he remained tight-lipped as usual. He laughed and said, “Next question!”
Back in December 2023, Brühl addressed the rumors of his involvement in the movie by claiming that he was in Australia shooting another project while Thunderbolts* was in production. He also said at the time that he would be interested in reprising his MCU role in the future.
“It’s always a delicate subject matter of what can you say? What can you not say? It’s such a complex universe, as you know, that I only understand maybe 1% of it,” he told Screen Rant. “There’s certain opportunities for you, there’s certain constellations where you might be part of more than in others. But it’s all a big if and a question mark. But again, if that would have been one of the projects for Zemo. I wouldn’t be shooting here in Australia with Ron Howard’s. And [if] destiny brings Zemo back sometime again, I would probably not say no,” he added.
In June 2024, Brühl reiterated his hope of returning to the MCU. But even then, he didn’t say anything about appearing in Thunderbolts*.
In the comics, Zemo formed a new incarnation of the Masters of Evil by recruiting his old allies and later transformed it into the superhero group Thunderbolts following the apparent demise of the Avengers and Fantastic Four. He hoped to find the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets and sell them to the highest bidder. Unfortunately for Zemo, most members of the group had come to love their new roles and turned against him.
Given how vastly different the roster of the eponymous group is in the movie from its comic-book counterpart and his absence from the promotional materials, Zemo, even if he appears, will probably have a limited time on screen.
Thunderbolts* debuts in U.S. theaters in May 2025.
