Marvel Studios is moving quickly towards the end of Phase 4, bringing some increasingly mature programming with Phase 5 and the rest of the Multiverse Saga. And for better or worse, the franchise has kept a largely PG-13 rating across its movies and TV shows, although every project has avoided one big thing - the ever coveted F-bomb.
The MCU is clearly no stranger to cursing, as nearly every single theatrical movie has included a warning about language as part of its MPAA-provided PG-13 rating. But even though PG-13 movies are granted the use of one F-bomb per movie or show, the MCU hasn't utilized this word at any point in the franchise's 14-year history.
That's not to say that Marvel's movies haven't come close to using the holy grail of curse words, with more than a few characters capable of and willing to drop an F-bomb throughout their time in the MCU.
With that being said, here are half a dozen times that Marvel Studios has censored F-bombs in its movies and streaming series from the Infinity Saga and the Multiverse Saga.
Iron Man 2 - Senator Stern
"F**k you, Mr. Stark. F**k you, buddy."
Early in 2010's Iron Man 2, Tony Stark was summoned to a court hearing regarding his possession of the Iron Man weapon, which ended with Tony flipping the proverbial bird to the hearing committee and humiliating Justin Hammer. This led to Garry Shandling's Senator Stern saying "F**k you" twice to Tony, giving the MCU its first implied F-bomb in only its third movie.
The movie censored the F-word in Iron Man 2 by using the CSPAN broadcast to keep the hearing FCC-friendly, which made sense as an in-universe plot decision. This F-bomb might not have slipped by if the movie simply showed the inside of the courtroom, but using the broadcast allowed fans to get the same full experience as the MCU's general public.
Spider-Man: Homecoming - Aunt May Parker
"What the fu-?!"
Spider-Man: Homecoming's final moment showed May Parker learning that her nephew was Spider-Man after Peter took off his mask with his bedroom door agape. This would cause any parent or guardian to say what May said in the moment, leading to the MCU's second implied F-bomb in its first solo Spidey outing.
This time, Marvel avoided using the full F-word by cutting straight to the credits right when May said it, all while Peter's eyes nearly popped out of his head. While the tension between aunt and nephew subsided after that, one can only imagine how much May laid into Peter for hiding his Spider secret for so long.
Avengers: Infinity War - Nick Fury
“Motherfu-”
Nearly nobody in movie history is more associated with the F-bomb than Samuel L. Jackson, who's cursed on-screen more than almost any actor in movie history. Unfortunately, that trend hasn't translated into the MCU yet, although Avengers: Infinity War almost made it happen before it came to an end.
In the movie's post-credits scene, Nick Fury pulled out his pager to call Captain Marvel just as he turned to dust, only uttering the first half of his iconic movie phrase before being wiped away. This felt like an even bigger tease than most other near-F-bombs in the MCU, and if anybody deserves to have one at some point during Marvel Studios' run, it's Jackson.
Spider-Man: Far From Home - Peter Parker
Continuing the trend from his first movie, Tom Holland got the distinct honor of closing out the entire Infinity Saga by almost dropping an F-bomb in 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home. This came directly after Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio used J. Jonah Jameson's Daily Bugle website to reveal that Peter Parker is Spider-Man to a worldwide audience, including on the side of Madison Square Garden.
Far From Home used the same technique that Homecoming did by cutting off Peter's line and jumping right into the credits before the MCU gets its first use of that word. This same scene opened up 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home as well, although that movie had a car horn censoring Peter instead of cutting him off completely.
Marvel Studios is moving quickly towards the end of Phase 4, bringing some increasingly mature programming with Phase 5 and the rest of the Multiverse Saga. And for better or worse, the franchise has kept a largely PG-13 rating across its movies and TV shows, although every project has avoided one big thing - the ever coveted F-bomb.
Moon Knight - Marc Spector
While Moon Knight doesn't have an actual near-F-bomb, it isn't for any lack of effort from its leading actor, Oscar Isaac.
According to reports from near the end of Moon Knight's run, Isaac tried on numerous occasions to get the one PG-13-allotted F-word into his Disney+ series, although none of them made the final cut. He admitted to filming a great number of takes that included the F-word in them, but alas, his quest continues as Moon Knight looks ahead to his next MCU appearance.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law - Jennifer Walters
"Captain America fu-"
The most recent near-F-bomb belongs to Tatiana Maslany in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law during the post-credits scene from Episode 1. As Bruce Banner revealed that Steve Rogers lost his virginity on the USO tour in 1943, Jennifer Walters let out arguably her funniest moment in the debut episode.
After faking being drunk to get this information out of her cousin, Jen exclaimed to anybody that could hear that Captain America had his moment of intimacy, celebrating it to the skies. With She-Hulk's status as one of the MCU's most meta characters, along with her knack for comedy, it only makes sense that she almost has a moment where she drops the MCU's first F-bomb.
Bonus Round
On top of the F-bombs that were cut off in the MCU, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has a couple of moments that almost used the coveted curse word.
“We're gonna have to have a serious talk about your language! ‘F**k this, f**k that,’ everything’s ‘f**k f**k f**k’ all the time!”
When Rocket and Baby Groot left Yondu during the battle against Ego, Rocket almost revealed how often the tiny humanoid tree cursed under the guise of saying "I Am Groot." Gunn revealed that this sequence was even animated in post-vis, but it never made it to the final cut of the movie.
In one of Vol. 2's five post-credits scenes, the now Adolescent Groot is sitting in his room playing a video game when Peter Quill comes in and complains about how disgusting it looks in there. This also includes some writing on the wall that actually reveals an F-bomb as an Easter egg in the movie.
As shared on Twitter by Dan Zetterström, the lettering comes from the MCU's Skrulls and translates to "F**k you," which may have been written by Groot. While it takes some research to find out, it's still hilarious to know that there's some kind of F-bomb officially in the MCU.
When Will The MCU Use an F-Bomb?
PG-13 movies are always hit-and-miss when it comes to F-bombs, and especially with the MCU being run by Walt Disney Studios, the use of them is even more difficult to come by. This latest example in She-Hulk certainly comes as the funniest near-miss in MCU history with regard to this word, although it does have fans wondering when - if ever - it will ever be uttered on Kevin Feige's watch.
No matter where else it may or may not happen, Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool 3 will allow the Merc With a Mouth to unleash a slew of F-bombs as he makes his way into the MCU. His first two solo movies combine for more than 150 uses of the word, and Marvel has promised fans that this franchise will remain R-rated and curse-word-filled when it comes into the MCU.
Reynolds even uttered a couple of bleeped-out F-bombs in his crossover with Korg when they reacted to the Free Guy trailer, which is only a tease for how foul-mouthed he will be when Deadpool 3 does release. But even with that franchise confirmed to be filled with adult language, fans remain hopeful that the MCU's more PG-13-rated entries will take the chance someday and use the word as well.
The MCU continues with She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, whose first episode is now streaming on Disney+.
