Update: An STXfilms spokesperson confirmed with us that this poster is not an official piece of marketing, but a leaked internal piece from an international distributor. We’ve adjusted the title of this article to reflect this.

No matter how hard they try, Marvel stars like Chadwick Boseman can’t seem to escape being connected to the Avengers in their other films; in Boseman’s case, it’s 21 Bridges. On Nov. 22, Boseman will be starring in the new cop thriller alongside Sienna Miller, Taylor Kitsch, J.K. Simons, and Keith David. Boseman plays an NYPD detective on the hunt for two criminals who killed two cops and are on the run in Manhattan. To prevent their escape, all the bridges and tunnels are closed down until the two cop killers are found and arrested.

A significant element about the marketing for 21 Bridges is the producing credits to longtime Marvel directors, Anthony Russo and Joe Russo. In the film’s first trailer, a significant graphic was included stating the involvement of the Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame directors. The two brothers are not involved in the directing of 21 Bridges or the film’s writing. The Russos are simply two of the 10 producers attached to the film.

With the release of 21 Bridges quickly approaching, the marketing is naturally speeding up to get the word out about the film’s release. A new poster has released - popping up on social media and various poster-hosting websites - with Boseman and Miller near the Brooklyn Bridge and cop cars and officers behind them. The otherwise standard and generic movie poster includes a tagline connecting Boseman’s character to his role in the Avengers films: “In a city on lockdown, he’s the only Avenger they can count on.”

Understandably, the marketing team behind 21 Bridges would want to ride the wave of Black Panther and Avengers’ popularity with its main star (who’s also producing) and two of its fellow Marvel-connected producers a part of the franchise. A graphic in the middle of its trailers, stating, “Produced by the visionary directors of Avengers: Endgame,” already comes across as perhaps too desperate. It’s unclear how much involvement the Russos brothers truly had in the movie as just two of 10 total producers. Undoubtedly, their involvement in 21 Bridges is much more limited than the marketing team wants audiences to think, though considering the success of Avengers: Endgame, it’s understandable why the Russos’ name is being used.

While it’s common to promote a famous filmmaker’s producing credit, it’s not necessary to advertise an actor based on their most famous role. Boseman is a talented actor who’s done more than star in Black Panther and reprise that role in two Avengers movies. Audiences are smart enough to recognize that the star of 21 Bridges is the same actor that plays the King of Wakanda in their favorite Marvel movies. Not only is the tagline incorrect, as Boseman’s character T’Challa is not an official Avenger, but it has the unintended side effect of presenting the film as one the studio has little faith in and so must resort to riding the coattails of Boseman’s involvement with the The Avengers.

Next: 2019 Winter Movie Preview: 15 Most Important Films To See

Source: Kevin L. Lee/Twitter

  • 21 Bridges Release Date: 2019-11-22