Summary
One of the most intriguing mysteries yet unanswered about the MCU’s latest offering,Thunderbolts*is not its plot; its title and punctuation. Apparently, the reason for this choice is so sensitive that Florence Pugh has to play coy.
Marketing forThunderbolts*has reasonably heightened as the movie has all but a little over two weeks to make it to theaters. Just days ago, Marvel released a behind-the-scenes featurette showingPugh attempting a Tom Cruise-esque stuntatop the world’s second-tallest building — Merdeka 118 — in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Jake Schreier film has been tagged as “Marvel’s Suicide Squad” by some owing to glaring parallels to the DC film: a team of Marvel anti-heroes and reformed villainswhich consists of Pugh’s Yelena Belova, Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes (Winter Soldier) and David Harbour’s Alexei Shostakov (Red Guardian) unite to battle Lewis Pullman’s The Void/Sentry.
When asked in a cast interview with Fandango the meaning and inspiration behind the asterisk inThunderbolts*title, Pugh furnished a reply that was as tantalizingly vague as it gets.
It’s a dangerous game and I don’t think any of us are allowed to speak
Thunderbolts*' Cast And Crew Have Repeatedly Parried The Elephant In The Room
But Fans Can Be One Step Ahead
Pugh’s cryptic response offers little in the way of an answer and is no different from previoushints byThunderbolts*cast and crew.Sometime in the fall of last year, David Harbour, who plays Marvel’s Red Guardian, shared that the asterisk has a purpose that he was excited for fans to uncover. Marvel Studio President, Kevin Feige, delivered an almost identical semantic — at least Harbour did better by confirming that the asterisk was more than a title placeholder.
All these attempts at concealment have done little to dissuade the audience from doing what they do best: theorizing to fill the vacuum. Pugh’s latest addition further strengthens the consensus coming out of the MCU fandom that the asterisk hints at the rebranding of a new team at the end of the movie; comic book readers will recognize this as potentially the“Dark Avengers,” alluding to theThunderboltscomic renamingin 2012. Other theories are available to choose from: a New Avengers, Young Avengers, a post-Avengers: Secret Warsteam — choose your pick.
There’s an inkling thatThunderbolts*, initially considered by many as the weakest title of an MCU 2025 slate that includesCaptain America: Brave New WorldandFantastic Four: First Steps, might turn out to be the hidden gem in Marvel’s 2025 slate. For one, it’s new territory for the MCU regarding an anti-hero ensemble film;the defunct DCEU’s first attempt went southsuspiciously due to studio meddling. And failure to deliver means fans may lose more faith in the Feige administration’s ability to make a good ensemble post-Avengers: Endgame. But the MCU had generally had green scores with ensembles; thus, no better franchise knows how to make one. One thing is clear though: the suspense withThunderbolts*' title won’t matter if the movie ends up not worth seeing.
Thunderbolts*roars into theaters on May 2
