The MCU's first 2025 theatrical release, Captain America: Brave New World, snuck in an F-bomb that went completely under the radar until the film's streaming debut. F-bombs have long been a topic of interest in the 17-year history of the largely PG-13-rated MCU, but recent years have opened the door to the holy grail of curse words coming into play.
An early scene in Captain America: Brave New World featured Harrison Ford's General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross dropping a previously unnoticed F-bomb. Outside of the MCU's R-rated franchises, which have taken the spotlight in the Multiverse Saga, this is one of only a handful of uses (heard or silent) of this word that fans have noticed. During the video reintroducing fans to Ford's President-elect Ross (taking over the role from the late William Hurt), one clip shows a still-mustachioed Ross angrily addressing the media in a press conference.
While there is no audio, his lips clearly show him saying, "Now, does anyone else have any stupid f***ing questions?" before kicking the podium over. Although Captain America 4 still does not include an audible F-bomb, this seemingly marks the film's one allotted use of the word with its PG-13 rating.
Captain America: Brave New World is the penultimate film in the MCU's Phase 5 slate, giving Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson his first solo movie. Alongside Danny Ramirez's Joaquin Torres, Shira Haas' Ruth Bat-Setaph, and Tim Blake Nelson's Leader, the fourth Captain America film tasks Sam Wilson with rebuilding the Avengers while also engaging in physical and strategic fights with Harrison Ford's President Ross. Captain America 4 is streaming on Disney+.
Other Notable F-Bombs in Marvel Studios' History
While the MCU has an intriguing history with the use of F-bombs, there are plenty of notable instances where it was used with great success for fans.
Most prominent in that effort was 2024's Deadpool & Wolverine, which included a staggering 118 uses of the word in its 2-hour-10-minute runtime. Nearly everybody in the cast got their chance to use the word on-camera. Particular standouts in that effort included Ryan Reynolds' Wade Wilson, Hugh Jackman's Wolverine, Leslie Uggams' Blind Al, and even Chris Evans' Johnny Storm.
However, that threequel did not get the honor of having the MCU's first F-bomb, which came courtesy of 2023's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. After years of trying, Chris Pratt finally got an uncensored use of the word into that film, as Peter Quill told Nebula to "open the f***ing door" after helping her figure out the door handle on a car.
In the realm of Disney+ shows, Moon Knight and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law almost let the word slip through on one occasion each. Other movies, like Iron Man 2, censored the word with bleeps, while Spider-Man: Homecoming and Avengers: Infinity War cut the dialogue or footage before the word came out.
Looking forward, the MCU seems fully on board for more adult-oriented storytelling, with a number of R-rated projects being planned and a sequel to Deadpool & Wolverine already being discussed internally.
Richard Nebens joined The Direct in March 2020, now serving as the site's Senior Writer and also working as an assistant editor and content creator. He started his journalism career as a hobby in 2019 and is passionate about sharing news and stories from the entertainment industry, especially comic book movies, comedy, and sci-fi. Richard looks to expand his knowledge about movies and TV every day, and he is eager to stay locked into the latest releases and breaking news at every opportunity.
