What Does The Thunderbolts* Asterisk Mean? 8 Theories About The Marvel Movie's Title

The title of Thunderbolts* is a massive talking point due to the addition of a mysterious asterisk, prompting many theories about what this could mean. Even after the release of Thunderbolts* first trailer, the asterisk is still the burning question about the film. Despite the combination of several popular Marvel characters comprising the Thunderbolts’ MCU team members, the lingering idea that the title’s asterisk has a hidden meaning is proving to overshadow most other aspects of the film.

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The asterisk of the title is proving to be such a talking point that even the cast members of Thunderbolts* have addressed it. The likes of David Harbour and Florence Pugh have hinted that all will be revealed upon the release of the upcoming Marvel movie in May 2025, though this has not slowed down the theory-crafting from Marvel fans. With so many possibilities for what the asterisk could mean, Thunderbolts* is quickly becoming one of the more discussed movies of recent years concerning the MCU.

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In literature, an asterisk is defined as a symbol used as a pointer to an annotation or footnote, usually leading to further, initially unseen information.

8 The Asterisk Is Because Thunderbolts* Is Setting Up The MCU’s Dark Avengers

The Marvel Comics Team Could Be Making Its Way To The MCU

Perhaps the most popular theory surrounding the Thunderbolts* asterisk is that it signifies an entirely different name for the team. The team in question is the Dark Avengers from Marvel Comics. The Dark Avengers were initially a collection of prominent Marvel supervillains – or heroes who were duped by Norman – who were dressed and marketed as popular Avengers, led by none other than Norman Osborn/Green Goblin himself. Osborn did this as both a way to undermine the real Avengers and increase his public perception, as he was widely known as the Goblin in the Marvel universe.

Marvel Comics Character	Supervillain Alias	Dark Avengers Alias
Norman Osborn	Green Goblin	Iron Patriot
Mac Gargan	Venom	Spider-Man
Benjamin Poindexter	Bullseye	Hawkeye
Noh-Varr	N/A	Captain Marvel
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Daken	Hellverine (After Dark Avengers)	Wolverine

The Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers theory stems from the idea that the MCU is telling a similar story in the 2025 film. In this case, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine can act as the morally questionable stand-in for Norman Osborn. As a result, the confirmed Thunderbolts members would be the former villains/antiheroes who take the place of prominent Avengers.

U.S. Agent and Sentry are both in Thunderbolts* and have been members of the Dark Avengers in the comics.

John Walker (U.S. Agent), Bucky (formerly Winter Soldier), and Alexei (Red Guardian) would serve as the Dark Avengers’ Captain America, while Yelena Belove would do so for Black Widow. Taskmaster can mimic any superpowers, shown to do so with Hawkeye in Black Widow, thus being his replacement. Ghost could be the Ant-Man replacement, or even Iron Man depending on the powers of her new suit, while Bob a.k.a. Sentry rivals the raw strength of Thor and Hulk. Using Marvel Comics as a template, the Thunderbolts* asterisk could mean the members are the Dark Avengers after all.

7 Harrison Ford’s Captain America 4 Role Impacts The Thunderbolts* Asterisk

Marvel Comics’ Big Coincidence Could Be Made A Distinct MCU Choice

One of the biggest coincidences in Marvel Comics is that Red Hulk/Thunderbolt Ross eventually becomes a member of the Thunderbolts team. In the MCU, it could be the case that the Thunderbolts are being changed to be named after Thunderbolt Ross/Red Hulk, with the asterisk in the Thunderbolts* title signifying his involvement in the film. Only three months before Thunderbolts* releases, the cast of Captain America: Brave New World will introduce Harrison Ford as the recast Thunderbolt Ross and depict his transformation into Red Hulk.

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Captain America 4 will introduce Ross as the President of the United States, meaning he has authority over Val, who Black Panther: Wakanda Forever confirmed as the director of the CIA. As such, a connection between the two characters makes sense. A popular theory is that Ross is involved in Thunderbolts* in some capacity, either as its pseudo-leader, hence the name and the asterisk, or as a powerful ally they can call in if they need the strength of a Hulk, with the asterisk hiding his involvement as a member.

6 The Thunderbolts* Asterisk Sets Up The Secret Avengers

A Covert Version Of The Avengers Could Be Built In Thunderbolts*

Although the MCU Thunderbolts could be built as the Dark Avengers, the asterisk could mean another version of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. After the Dark Avengers were disbanded in Marvel Comics, Captain America took over from Norman Osborn, reformed The Avengers, and even built a covert, black ops team dubbed the Secret Avengers. In the MCU, the asterisk in Thunderbolts* could signal that this team is not the Thunderbolts at all, but instead the beginnings of the Secret Avengers.

The Secret Avengers has somewhat been depicted in the MCU between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, consisting of Steve Rogers’ Captain America, Black Widow, Falcon, and Scarlet Witch.

This connects again to Captain America: Brave New World‘s story, which could end with Sam taking over from Ross/Red Hulk to lead America’s security. He could contact Bucky, who he has a close connection with, and form the Secret Avengers. Sam Wilson knows the advantages of a covert Avengers group after being part of one in the MCU’s Phase Three, with Captain America building his own version for Phase Five. While Val’s involvement could put a spanner in the works, Thunderbolts* could end with the titular team being Val’s version, and the asterisk signifying Cap’s version: the Secret Avengers.

The Thunderbolts members being reformed as the Secret Avengers would also make more sense than the Dark Avengers. After all, it is difficult to class any of Thunderbolts* characters as supervillains, with most being conflicted, flawed antiheroes. Therefore, the Thunderbolts being the Secret Avengers in the MCU simply fit each character better than changing them to be outright supervillains like Green Goblin, Venom, and Bullseye.

5 Thunderbolts* Asterisk Hints At Val’s Unclear Motivations

Val Is An MCU Wildcard In Thunderbolts*

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Undoubtedly, the biggest mystery of the Thunderbolts* roster is Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Thus far in the MCU, Val’s motivations have been incredibly unclear. At first, she was a secretive, spy-like character who recruited John Walker and Yelena Belova, the latter to kill Clint Barton/Hawkeye for unknown reasons, theorized to be Madame HYDRA. Then, she was developed as the director of the CIA who wanted to get her hands on Vibranium from Wakanda.

Related I Think I Know What The Thunderbolts* Asterisk Means, & It’s Bad News For The MCU’s Team

Thunderbolts* has been made more interesting due to an asterisk in the title; I think I know what it means, and it spells trouble for the team.

Going into Thunderbolts* it is still unclear what Val wants in the long run. With that in mind, this could be what the title’s asterisk signifies. Asterisks are used to denote further information that is not immediately visible. In this case, that information could be Val’s villainous motivations that no one knows about before Thunderbolts* releases.

4 The Thunderbolts* Title Could Relate To The Team’s Hidden Member

Thunderbolts* Has A Secret Team Member

Another mystery raised by the trailer for the 2025 Marvel film was the identity of Thunderbolts* Bob. Bob is depicted as a seemingly normal man in the Thunderbolts* trailer who is simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, rumors from the casting of Bob as well as hints in the trailer point toward Bob being Robert Reynolds a.k.a. Sentry. Sentry is a superhero from Marvel Comics who is essentially the Marvel version of Superman, a near-invulnerable hero with many powers and immense durability.

The trailer for Thunderbolts* shows Bob uninjured yet wearing clothes littered with bullet holes, indicating his durability as Sentry.

With the trailers for Thunderbolts* hiding Bob’s real nature as Sentry, this is what the title’s asterisk could mean. As alluded to several times, asterisks indicate footnotes that give further information. Regarding this theory specifically, the asterisk is signaling the extra member of the Thunderbolts in Bob, with the further information being his superhero identity as Sentry.

3 Sentry’s Dark Alter Ego Could Be The Source Of Thunderbolts* Asterisk

Sentry Is An Interesting Double-Edged Sword In Marvel Comics

In Marvel Comics, the character of Sentry comes as a package deal with a dark alter ego. That alter ego is named the Void as is essentially a manifestation of Robert Reynolds’ darker side, possessing the same immense powers as he does as Sentry. This gives the character a notable weakness to offset his amazing power as well as sympathetic explorations of his darkest elements.

Much like how the asterisk in the
Thunderbolts*
title could indicate Bob as Sentry, it could also indicate the hidden antagonistic aspect of the Void…

Where Sentry is, the Void is not far behind. This indicates trouble for Thunderbolts* and the members of the titular team, with Bob’s Void personality expected to be one of the film’s primary villains. Much like how the asterisk in the Thunderbolts* title could indicate Bob as Sentry, it could also indicate the hidden antagonistic aspect of the Void.

2 The Thunderbolts* Are A Lie…

The Thunderbolts* Trailer Hints As Much

The final theory concerning the Thunderbolts* asterisk stems from the first trailer for the film released by Marvel Studios. The trailer gave some interesting insights into the formation of the Thunderbolts as a team, potentially hinting that they were never supposed to be a team at all. In the Thunderbolts* trailer, Yelena, John Walker, Ghost, and Taskmaster find themselves at a secluded location resembling a giant warehouse before fighting each other briefly and subsequently talking things out.

Yelena quickly comes to the realization that everyone there, seemingly minus Bob, has done awful things in the past. From taking down government labs to assassinations, each of the characters assembled in Thunderbolts* knows a lot about covert operations and could be someone who needs to be silenced. The members of the film are then shown escaping in various ways, leading to the theory that the title’s asterisk indicates that the Thunderbolts were never meant to be a team, but a hit list.

1 …But They Will Become The Real Marvel Team

The Thunderbolts Will Form From The Ashes Of This Hit List

Custom image by Debanjana Chowdhury

The asterisk symbolizing that the Thunderbolts were never supposed to be a team could actually lead to another usage of the symbol in the title. If the above theory is correct and the members of the Thunderbolts were originally supposed to be killed, it would make a lot of sense for them to team up to find who was responsible. It is likely that this person is Val, and she plays it off as a way of bringing them together.

Regardless, this temporary alliance will likely spiral into a permanent one, thus forming the Thunderbolts. Herein lies the final potential meaning of the asterisk in the film’s title. Assuming that it is true the Thunderbolts were never meant to be formed, the asterisk could symbolize this. The further information it denotes could be that, despite original intentions, a team formed in the alliance that spawned from the assassination attempt against each member. Whether this and the many other theories are true remains to be seen, and more will undoubtedly be crafted before Thunderbolts* releases in May 2025.

Thunderbolts* (2025)

Marvel’s Thunderbolts* is a superhero movie based on the comic team of the same name. The movie acts as a part of the MCU’s fifth phase of films. The film sees the likes of Bucky Barnes, Yelena Belova, Wyatt Russell, the Red Guardian, and more as an unlikely group of heroes and villains brought together to fight for good.

Director Jake Schreier Release Date May 2, 2025 Writers Lee Sung-jin , Eric Pearson , Joanna Calo Cast Florence Pugh , Sebastian Stan , David Harbour , Wyatt Russell , Olga Kurylenko , Hannah John-Kamen , Julia Louis-Dreyfus , Geraldine Viswanathan , Lewis Pullman , Joshua Mikel