Marvel Studios knew exactly what they were doing when they chose to space out the releases of Infinity War and Avengers 4 by a whole year, giving us just over twelve months to contemplate the genocidal cliffhanger of the recent Marvel mega-hit and conceive countless theories speculating on what could be coming our way in next year’s sequel.
In their search for answers, fans have proven that they’re willing to look anywhere and everywhere for clues, even the hashtags of a seemingly innocent Instagram post from Jeremy Renner. The Hawkeye actor recently uploaded a selfie in which the star showed off his stylish new look, with the accompanying caption reading as follows:
“Day is done! It’s Friday … enjoy your weekend everyone @marvel @avengers #purplebadguy?? #hawkeye #widow? #avengers? #A6 ? #sendinglove #? #cawcawmfs #isanyonegonnashowup??? #whoISstillALIVE?”
While you might think that there isn’t much to see here, certain fans have been scrambling to decipher the meaning of these hashtags. Granted, most of them are pretty obvious. “#purplebadguy” is the villainous Thanos, whom the bow-wielding “#hawkeye” will presumably be battling with in the upcoming Avengers 4. “#widow,” meanwhile, is a clear reference to Black Widow, implying a possible team-up between Natasha Romanoff and the only other Phase 1 Avenger not to have their own solo movie (so far).
It’s the “#A6 ?” part however, that’s got a few people confused, though there seems to be a pretty reasonable explanation for this, too. Back in 2012, the original line-up for the titular team of The Avengers was Hawkeye, Black Widow, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and Hulk. It’s likely no coincidence that this makes six Avengers. Incidentally, it just so happens that with the exception of Mark Ruffalo, the full line-up have matching “A6” tattoos in a show of Phase 1 solidarity.
Speaking of which, from the sound of things, Avengers 4 will see the reunion of the original six, who’ll be bringing the first eleven years of the franchise to a head when the film hits theaters on May 3rd, 2019.
