Harbour said Shostakov has "tons of cracks all over him. And he's not the heroic, noble man that [people] want him to be. He both comically and tragically has a lot of flaws". For Harbour's portrayal, he and Black Widow director Cate Shortland discussed Ricky Gervais' performance in The Office and Philip Seymour Hoffman's in The Savages (2007), "comedy that comes out of real domestic need". In Black Widow (2021), years prior to the film's main events, Shostakov allies himself with General Dreykov of the Red Room, who sends him on a mission to the United States alongside Melina Vostokoff, Romanoff, and Belova, respectively his surrogate wife and daughters. After concluding the mission however, Dreykov has Shostakov incarcerated in the Seventh Circle Prison. In the present, Romanoff and Belova free Shostakov to help them and Vostokoff destroy the Red Room. An alternate timeline version of Shostakov will appear in the upcoming animated series Marvel Zombies. Harbour will reprise his role as Shostakov in the upcoming live-action film Thunderbolts (2024), depicted as a member of the titular team alongside Belova. Video games The Alexei Shostakov incarnation of the Red Guardian appears in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2. The MCU version of Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian appears as a playable character in Marvel: Future Fight as part of the Black Widow film tie-in update. The MCU version of Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian appears as a playable character in Marvel Puzzle Quest. The MCU version of Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian appears as a playable character in Marvel Strike Force. References External links Red Guardian (Alexei Shostakov) at Marvel.com Characters created by Jeph Loeb Characters created by John Buscema Characters created by Mark Gruenwald Characters created by Roy Thomas Comics characters introduced in 1967 Comics characters introduced in 1989 Fictional aviators Fictional blade and dart throwers Fictional KGB agents Fictional Russian people Fictional shield fighters Fictional Soviet people Marvel Comics cyborgs Marvel Comics martial artists Marvel Comics robots Marvel Comics superheroes Russian superheroes Soviet Union-themed superheroes