As a staunchly PG-13 franchise – at least until Deadpool 3 comes along next summer to turn the air blue an amidst the smashing of the fourth wall – the Marvel Cinematic Universe is allowed to have one utterance of the word “f*ck” in whatever movie it likes.
However, it took 15 years and 32 features for somebody to actually say it, with Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord making history when he urged his cohorts to “get in the f*cking car” in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. True to form, James Gunn allowed his mischievous streak to shine through on his way out of the door, although it remains to be seen if anyone not named Wade Wilson will pick up the slack.
Perhaps the most surprising thing – which even extended through Secret Invasion – was that Samuel L. Jackson has yet to have Nick Fury call somebody a “motherf*cker” like only he can. As chance would have it, Gunn was asked directly on Threads if he was surprised the iconic cyclops wasn’t “given” the honor.
“Were you surprised that Marvel didn’t give Samuel L Jackson the first F*ck? If Marvel asked to concede the F*ck to Jackson in a future movie, would you have pushed back? Or would you have literally given a F*ck?”
In response, Gunn’s retort made it clear that there was no asking, begging, or pleading with Kevin Feige for an F-bomb; he just did it, and he would have fought hard to keep it, too.
“Marvel didn’t give anyone the first f*ck. I took it. If they had pushed back I would have fought it tooth and nail but they were cool and did not.”
It sounds as though anyone can state the case for an F-bomb whenever they like, but outside of Deadpool, all bets are off as to the who, what, when, where, and why.