The LA Times’ Hero Complex is reporting as breaking exclusive news that they are surprised to confirm that Captain American: The First Avenger will be released as just “The First Avenger” when it comes out in a few foreign territories this summer. Namely Russia, South Korea, and the Ukraine.
We’ve been speculating about this for months, as has Jeff Vice from The Big Movie Mouth-Off, and it’s nice to get a confirmation finally.
Really, it seems to be common sense. The last decade has been rough for America in the eyes of the rest of the world and we’re not exactly the good guys we used to be. It makes good business sense to not rub it in the noses of foreign audiences.
From the LA TImes piece:
In private, Marvel insiders said that early on in the project’s planning there was talk that the title might need to be changed in numerous international markets but that there was a ”pleasant surprise” — the brand recognition of the comic-book superhero was so strong that it overrode those considerations in many places. That was not the case in Russia, South Korea and the Ukraine.
This is really not surprising at all. Marvel is very savvy about their brands. If nothing else, it’s proof positive we know what we’re talking about.