The mysterious asterisk inThunderboltscontinues to dominate the conversation about the nextMCUmovie, and in the lead-up to its release, director Jake Schreier and actress Florence Pugh have teased what they know. It isn’t long before answers to all themysteries surroundingThunderboltsare revealed as the movie nears its May 2 release date. Until then, fans can only speculate over how the titular team will deal withthe challenge of the Voidin the apparent absence of thecomparatively more powerful Avengers.
Regarding the asterisk mystery, Jake Schrier and Florence Pugh have remained tight-lipped - though Schrier assures audiences that “It means something,” in a recent interview with Empire Magazine. Their comments come just over a month after a Japanese poster for the movie added the tagline “*The Avengers are not available,” leading prospective audiences to wonder if this was all it was supposed to denote. Neither Schrier nor Pugh outright deny this possibility, while Executive Producer Brian Chapek added further reasoning behind adding the asterisk. When asked about the nature of the asterisk, they each had this to say:
Brian Chapek: “We wanted to do something very different, and capture people’s attention.”
Florence Pugh: “I actually know. But I’m not gonna tell you. I hold all the power.”
Jake Schrier: “I don’t think I can say anything. I can say that it means something. There’s some general sense of what an asterisk means.”
What The Comments About The Thunderbolts* Asterisk Mean
The Filmmakers Certainly Didn’t Reveal Much
The filmmakers' comments are frustratingly vague. It is worth noting that the cryptic asterisk was added to the title well after the movie’s initial announcement, whichcould suggest that it doesn’t have story-changing connotations. Schrier’s comments about there being a “general sense of what an asterisk means,” meanwhile, hardly puts any of the prevailing theories to bed. Among the most prominent of these theories are the following:
What Does The Thunderbolts* Asterisk Mean? 8 Theories About The Marvel Movie’s Title
Marvel’s Thunderbolts* movie was rebranded to feature an asterisk in the title, with several theories being crafted as to what it could mean.
Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing for sure what it means until the movie’s release. This was asserted by Kevin Feige soon after the asterisk was added in April 2024. Speaking at CinemaCon 2024, Feige stated:
“That is the official title of Thunderbolts and we won’t talk more about that until after the movie comes out.”
This suggests that the asterisk is directly tied to the narrative, as he is presumably suggesting the nature of the asterisk will be revealed upon watching. It also explains why Schrier and company are remaining tight-lipped until the eleventh hour. This, at least, gives rise to some hope that the meaning behind it will amount to more than the simple tagline “The Avengers are not available.”
Our Take On The Comments About The Thunderbolts* Asterisk
I Just Hope There Is A Significant Payoff
I’m quite happy that the asterisk will remain a mystery untilThunderboltsis finally released, though it does put pressure on Marvel Studios to deliver on the build-up. Whilethe latestThunderboltstrailerhas supercharged my excitement, I fear I’ll be bitterly disappointed if the payoff isn’t substantial. Whatever the case,as a marketing ploy, I think it works wonders, as I’m now champing at the bit to discover the truth as soon as possible.
