10 Biggest Marvel Movie Mistakes That Most People Didn’t Notice

The movies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe aren’t immune from featuring occasional mistakes, but many of them are all too easy to miss. Since the ‘00s, Marvel movies have become the backbone of modern blockbuster cinema, often contributing to the most profitable box office numbers in any given year. The movies of the MCU, in particular, have proven massively popular and successful, establishing the most ambitious shared movie universe ever conceived as a means of adapting the characters and stories of Marvel Comics into live action. However, like all movies, the MCU’s process isn’t flawless, and mistakes occasionally slip through into the finished products.

The MCU is known for its hidden details and subtle Easter eggs, and that, in turn, has seen its movies run under a microscope for potential references to upcoming Marvel movies or links between existing properties. This level of close examination often unearths various movie mistakes: plot holes, continuity errors, or simple factual inaccuracies are all common. However, not all of these mistakes are as well-known as others, with a number of glaring errors actually slipping by all but the most eagle-eyed audience members. With that in mind, here are 10 of the biggest Marvel movie mistakes that most people didn’t notice.

10 Iron Monger’s Victims Defy Gravity

Iron Man (2008)

The very first movie in the MCU, Iron Man, features a rather silly mistake that’s all too easy to miss. During the film’s climactic battle between Iron Man and Iron Monger, the villain picks up a moving vehicle and launches it at the hero. Thankfully, Iron Man’s quick reactions see him catch the car, much to the amazement of the terrified family inside. However, despite the fact that the car is being held almost vertically, the family’s hair appears unaffected by the forces of gravity. It’s a brief moment back in the earliest days of the MCU’s movie timeline, but it’s still a glaring error.

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

The Incredible Hulk introduced the titular behemoth into the MCU but eschewed the traditional origin story for a narrative a little further along the hero’s arc. In the film, Bruce Banner is on the run, hunted across the globe by the US government. After they locate the gamma-infected scientist in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, a lengthy chase ensues. However, throughout the chase, time appears warped, switching at random between full daylight and overcast twilight. The fast-paced nature of the scene makes it easy to overlook, but it appears to be a clear continuity error upon closer inspection.

8 Druig’s Geographical Errors

Eternals (2021)

Phase 4 of the MCU introduced the Eternals to the MCU, but with them came a handful of subtle factual errors. One of the least affable members of Eternals’ cast of characters is Druig, who grows disillusioned with their purpose and retreats to the Amazon rainforest, where he leads his own tribe. However, the explanation is that he originally led them there after their nearby home of Tenochtitlan was attacked. However, Tenochtitlan is in Mexico, which is a considerable distance from the Amazon. It’s a simple geographical error that’s incredibly easy to overlook, but it’s still a huge Marvel movie mistake.

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

The ending of Avengers: Infinity War remains one of the MCU’s most shocking and powerful moments, as it saw Thanos assemble the Infinity Stones and succeed in his goal to eradicate half of all life in the universe. However, the moment also offers up an incredibly subtle movie mistake: when Thanos snaps, it’s broad daylight in both Wakanda and San Francisco (as seen in the film’s mid-credits scene). The approximate geographical location of Wakanda would mean there was an approximate time difference of between eight and ten hours, making the likelihood that both would be enjoying daylight simultaneously all but impossible.

6 Ant-Man’s Extra Particles

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Avengers: Endgame sees the MCU’s remaining heroes discover time travel, which they use to enact a daring time heist in order to stop Thanos. The Avengers justify the rules of time travel by explaining it requires Pym Particles, and that they only have a finite supply (as Hank Pym disappeared in the Snap). However, after traveling through time, Ant-Man is shown shrinking at least twice, which also requires Pym Particles, seemingly disproving the earlier line about their limited resources. It’s clear that the idea was introduced to prevent plot holes, but doing so creates another movie mistake.

5 Norway’s Scottish Connection

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

At one point during Avengers: Endgame, Hulk travels to New Asgard (helpfully denoted as existing on the former site of Tønsberg, Norway) to recruit Thor for the Avengers’ time heist. The scenes set there were actually filmed in Scotland, which is actually subtly revealed thanks to the appearance of British phone numbers and vehicle license plates on multiple occasions. It’s an incredibly minor revealing mistake, but it clearly betrays the filming location to those familiar with life in either Britain or Norway.

4 Two Ant-Men

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Perhaps one of the most glaring errors in Avengers: Endgame is only easy to miss, thanks to the scene in which it appears. The Battle of Earth is such an epic moment that it’s not easy to carefully focus on any one detail long enough to glimpse a mistake, but the problem is actually decidedly large. The film shows Scott Lang working with Hope van Dyne to fix the Quantum Tunnel, then cuts to the battle, where Ant-Man can also be seen in giant form, fighting with a Leviathan. Having Scott appear in two places at once is an undeniable mistake, even if it’s not initially the most obvious.

3 Black Widow’s Lethal Hair

The Avengers (2012)

An early scene in The Avengers reintroduces Scarlett Johannson’s Black Widow as a force to be reckoned with, breaking free from her apparent captivity in order to follow SHIELD orders and secure the expertise of Bruce Banner. When attacking the henchman holding her prisoner, Black Widow swings her head backwards to headbutt one thug, but the camera angle shows her clearly missing him. Instead, all that connects is her hair, but the henchman falls down unconscious anyway, confirming that either Black Widow’s hair is super powerful or The Avengers features an easy-to-miss mistake.

2 Marvel’s Sonic Boom Problem

Thor (2011), Iron Man (2008), Various Others

One of the most easily overlooked mistakes in the MCU is also its most prevalent. Movies such as Thor, Iron Man, and multiple Avengers films all make dramatic use of the sonic boom to add an auditory element to a hero jumping into action. The problem is that the sound of the boom always perfectly synchronizes with the physical movement, marking a clear misrepresentation of the nature of sound and light. The speed of sound in relation to the speed of light would mean that the boom should come after, even if it wouldn’t look as impressive on screen.

1 Ant-Man’s Ant-Riding

Ant-Man (2015)

Though Ant-Man’s plot holes are often considered, one particular element of the film’s mistakes is broadly overlooked by many. After the movie explains that shrinking does not affect the mass of an object (or person), it then fails to carry the idea consistently through its story. Nowhere is this more evident than when the hero begins flying on the back of an ant – if his mass had indeed been unaffected, his weight should have killed the insect outright. It’s an incredibly silly and inconsistent error in logic, making it one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s silliest movie mistakes.

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