Marvel Studios has clarified the reason behind the asterisk accompanying the title of the action film “Thunderbolts*”. The studio has strategically initiated a new phase of its promotional campaign, controversially incorporating spoilers for the upcoming movie.
Marvel Studios began altering posters and advertising billboards for “Thunderbolts*”, using them to reveal the film`s new designation. On social media platforms, studio representatives shared a video featuring the movie`s principal actors peeling back the “Thunderbolts*” title on a poster to expose an alternative title beneath: “*New Avengers”. In a separate promotional clip, Sebastian Stan, who portrays Bucky Barnes in the MCU, was shown walking around a city, physically updating posters.
The studio`s tactic significantly surprised many Marvel fans, primarily because the revelation of the team`s new name effectively serves as a spoiler for the film`s third act. Director Jake Schreier offered an explanation for this unusual promotional approach, stating, “If Val in the movie tried to pull off a switcheroo and sell the world on the `New Avengers,` we can do it too.”
The film “Thunderbolts*” is scheduled to premiere on May 2, 2025. The ensemble cast features Florence Pugh, Hannah John-Kamen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sebastian Stan, Olga Kurylenko, David Harbour, and Wyatt Russell, all of whom have previously appeared as supporting characters or antagonists in various Marvel Cinematic Universe films and series.
Finley Holt