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The inspirations for Marvel's Thunderbolts* are multifaceted as Jake Schreier masterfully created a compelling narrative that explored so much more than just heroism and the fights of grandeur. Since its release in May 1, 2025, as the film continues to impress fans during it's second week, Schreier is making a few revelations on the inspirations behind Thunderbolts*, particularly Grammy winning rapper Kendrick Lamar, who the director has worked with before.
Schreier has previously worked with Lamar and Baby Keem on some of their songs. He revealed how a certain movie outing with the rappers as they watched Chritopher Nolan's Tenet, gave him the inspiration for shooting Thunderbolts*. Talking to IMAX, Schreier stated,
“Something that happened during the pandemic. I was shooting these music videos and they were these long oner [one-shot] videos. I did one for Baby Keem and did one for Kendrick. And we had this time on our hands and I went with pgLang down to IMAX headquarters because we all got to watch Tenet there together.”
He went on to share that they had created IMAX versions of the videos they filmed and had the chance to watch them at the IMAX headquarters. He described the experience as incredible, highlighting how the music videos were shot in single takes within expansive, open settings. Watching them in the full 1.43:1 aspect ratio on an IMAX screen, he said, brought a whole new scale and depth to the visuals. Schreier continued:
“So that was where it really started. Talking to those guys about that and all of the proprietary stuff that they have down there that you can do to get things to be practical on that scale and really resonate, and then getting to come back with a whole movie in hand to work on — it was really special.”
Kendrick Lamar's influence on the MCU
Kendrick Lamar has previously bagged one Academy Award and one Grammy award for curating the soundtrack album for Black Panther (2018), which has now become one of the most iconic soundtracks in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The Black Panther soundtrack is historically significant and unique for how it blends both modern hip-hop as well as traditions of Africa, just as Wakanda blends futurism and tradition. As for Lamar, his lyrics lean more towards the implicit side, often politically charged and inspiring, which perfectly aligned with the artistic vision of the film, primarily its representation of Black culture.
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As a culturally relevant and critical success, the soundtrack included multiple award nominations and contributed to Black Panther's notoriety as less of a superhero film and more of a cultural experience. While Black Panther emerged as a social and cultural celebration of Blackness on screen through the influence of Kendrick Lamar , it also demonstrated how a special, artistic vision can be utilized to inform an audience worldwide.
Black Panther is available to stream on Disney+. Thunderbolts* is currently running in theaters.
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