An underlying mystery about who bought the Avengers Towers in New York has been bothering fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for some time. Formerly the Stark Tower, owned by billionaire Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr), aka Iron Man, the high-rise building was rechristened as the Avengers Tower at the end of the 2012 movie The Avengers. The building remained the Avengers headquarters till the events of the 2015 movie Avengers: Age of Ultron, which had the famous party scene and the birth of Ultron (James Spader) at that very place, and here's also where Vision (Paul Bettany) was born. ‘Thunderbolts’: First Poster of Florence Pugh-Sebastian Stan’s Marvel Movie Reminds Fans of ‘This Is the End’, ‘Sons of Anarchy’ and ‘Dolittle’ – Here’s Why!

But after the Avengers added more members during the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, they moved the headquarters to a former Stark Industries headquarters in upstate New York and it became the Avengers Compound. After the Avengers split up in Captain America: Civil War, Tony Stark sold the Avengers Tower. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) was tasked to move stuff out of Avengers Tower to the Avengers Compound. In a blink-n-miss scene in Spider-Man: Far From Home, where you can see the tower being restructured after someone else has bought the tower.

A Still From Spider-Man: Far From Home

But who is the mysterious buyer? Fans were speculating it was Reed Richards (soon to make his MCU debut in The Fantastic Four: First Steps) or Doctor Doom (played by Robert Downey Jr again... also soon to make his MCU debut in upcoming Avengers movies). For five years since Spider-Man: Far From Home came out, this mystery has been bothering Marvel fans, but it looks like Thunderbolts might finally answer that, if you go by a scene teased in its first teaser trailer, that premiered on September 24. Or so some fans are believing.

ICYMI, Here's the Teaser Trailer of 'Thunderbolts':

The Mysterious Buyer Teased in 'Thunderbolts'

At around 2.48 minute-mark in the above teaser trailer, we see the Thunderbolts - Yelena (Florence Pugh), Bucky (Sebastian Stan), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko), US Agent (Wyatt Russell) and Red Guardian (David Harbour) - meet Valentina Allegra de Fontaine aka Val (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) at what looks like a living room with bar attached of what is a luxurious penthouse in a high-rise building that offers a spectacular skyline view. ‘Thunderbolts’: ‘Six Fingers’? Eagle-Eyed Fans Spot Photoshop Mistake in First Look Poster of Florence Pugh’s Marvel Movie (View Pics)

A Still From Thunderbolts Teaser Trailer

Many on the internet believe this is the famous room where Tony Stark had his one-on-one conversation with Loki in The Avengers or where the party scene and Ultron's first attack on the Avengers happened in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Both rooms even have an elevator open directly into them.

A Still From Thunderbolts Teaser Trailer

Check Out What Fans Are Saying About Avengers Tower

"Val and Thunderbolts Have Taken Over Avengers Tower'

This One Offers Skyline Proof!

'The Watchtower?'

A Party Scene Earlier in the Trailer Also Showed Loki's Sceptre

'Val is Set Up in Avengers Tower'

While we can say with certainty it is not the Thunderbolts who have bought the Avengers Tower, the real questions to be asked here is  - who owns that building - Val or the agency who had hired her? While Val has appeared in MCU in movies like Black Widow and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and in the show The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, we still do not know much about her, except that she works for the CIA. Since the events of Captain America: Civil War, Tony Stark had become a pro-government person, even creating a high-security prison in the middle of the ocean for them in The Raft, there is also a possibility that he sold the Tower to the government who in turn gave it to the CIA which may have renamed it as the Watchtower and gave Val her office there.

A Still From Thunderbolts Teaser Trailer

There is also a possibility that Val herself might have bought the tower, considering she is a contessa in the Marvel comics and therefore, we assume would be rolling in riches.

The second question is - is it really the Avengers Tower?

Is The Building Merdeka 118?

While scouring for fan posts who claim the above scene took place in the former Avengers Tower, there was one post that caught our eye which had a different opinion.

This was posted right after when Thunderbolts trailer was leaked from the SDCC 2024  event where it was premiered, forcing Marvel to reveal the trailer early online after a month. ‘Daredevil: Born Again’, ‘Thunderbolts’, Captain America: Brave New World’, ‘Ironheart’, ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Trailers Shown at D23 Expo Leaked Online! 

Merdeka 118 is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and it is claimed to be the second-tallest building in the world, at 2,227 feet and 118 storeys, after Dubai's famous Burj Khalifa (2,717 feet, 163 storeys).

Merdeka 118

At the SDCC 2024, when Florence Pugh was asked the most dangerous stunt she performed in the movie, she replied, "Jumping off the second tallest building in the world", before going off with a "bye!". This made people speculate that she shot at least one scene at Merdeka 118.

So is the above scene shot at Merdeka 118? The window pane structure is also similar to how the office rooms are in the building as you can see below.

Interior of Office Space in Merdeka 118 (Photo Credits: Maria de la Paz)

There is also a possibility that Merdeka 118 could be used as a location setting for the new refurbished form of the former Avengers Tower, with the present owners wanting to change it very differently from what it once used to be. Previously, the interiors of the Avengers Tower were sets created at Shepperton Studios, Shepperton in Surrey, as per reports. Anyway, we will get the final answer when Thunderbolts arrives in theatres on May 2, 2025.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 24, 2024 12:29 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).