Avengers: Endgame is still in theaters and we don’t yet know when it will arrive on home video. But when it does, many fans may be hoping for deleted scenes and perhaps an even longer cut of the film, despite its already 3-hour runtime. We’ll have to wait to see if we get some sort of Director’s Cut with the Blu-ray, but there is already another, unofficial cut of the film in existence. You might not be interested in watching this one though, as it edits out Captain Marvel and other women.
According to NPR, an anonymous fan has edited a pirated version of 2019’s biggest movie to create what is called a “defeminized” version. This modified cut of Avengers: Endgame, now circulating on an illegal streaming site, completely eliminates Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel from the movie-- as well as any other elements that the editor interpreted as being feminist or queer.
In addition to losing Captain Marvel entirely, the “defeminized” version of Avengers: Endgame also eliminates the part in the final battle where women rescue Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. I’m guessing that means the A-Force shot with all the female heroes is definitely cut. None of the male characters hug each other in this modified version of the movie, and Black Panther’s role is also minimized.
Also missing is the opening scene of the film where Hawkeye teaches his daughter to shoot with a bow and arrow. The reasoning for that cut, according to an accompanying document is that “Young women should learn skills to become good wives and mothers and leave the fighting to men.” It's a line of thinking that is certainly controversial, and one that goes against the messaging in Avengers: Endgame.
This is just the latest salvo internet trolls have taken against Brie Larson, after review-bombing Captain Marvel earlier this year in response to comments she made about inclusivity in the film press (comments that she later clarified).
This isn’t the first time this has happened with a blockbuster film either. Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi received a similar “defeminized” cut, dubbed more appropriately “The Chauvinist Cut” took that hotly debated film and removed scenes of women in battle, making decisions or really doing anything to further the plot in any way.
These kind of fan edits, if you can really call them that given that the editor isn’t a fan of so much of the movie, excise much of what is needed to make the story work in the name of not having to look at fully fleshed out female characters. And so insecurities turn a great film into a crappy one that doesn’t really fit together.
It should be noted that it is entirely possible that the creator of the Avengers: Endgame defeminized cut is just trolling, looking for attention and to get a rise out of people that take stuff too seriously. But who wants to watch a pirated version of a 3-hour movie for a mediocre joke?
That’s a totally plausible theory, and Poe’s Law speaks to the ambiguity of the internet where, without clear knowledge of the author’s intent (and they could always be lying) it is impossible to parody extreme views in such a way that it can’t be mistaken for a sincere expression of those views. Personally, I think I'll stick with the theatrical cut.
Avengers: Endgame is still in theaters and we’ll keep you updated on when you can snag the proper version of the film on home video. Check out our 2019 Release Schedule to see all the other movies people will get overly upset about this year.
