Five original “Avengers” stars — Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, and Jeremy Renner — got matching tattoos in 2018.
Disney/Marvel; Robert Downey Jr./Instagram
Missing from the group was the sixth original group member, Mark Ruffalo (Hulk/Bruce Banner), who opted against getting inked because he’s “afraid of needles.”
Downey Jr.’s tattoo is on his right forearm, Johansson’s is on her bicep, Renner’s is on the back of his neck, and Hemsworth’s is on the right side of his torso.
It’s unclear where Evans’ ink is located, but according to Page Six, it’s on the right side of his torso.
The idea for matching tattoos came from Johansson and Evans. The design was created by Josh Lord, an artist at New York’s East Side Ink who has also done several pieces for Johansson.
In a January 2019 interview with Revolver magazine, Lord said that he worked with the stars to create a design that everyone agreed on and represented their Marvel journeys.
If you look closely at the ink, it’s packed with references to the original six, depending on which angle you look at the tattoo from.
“There’s a symbol for everybody in the movie hidden in there,” Lord said. “Their initials are also all hidden in there.”
Lord also said that Evans and Johansson were the first to get the ink because Evans was in New York from March to May 2018 while starring in the Broadway show “Lobby Hero.”
As for the other “Avengers” members, Downey Jr. told Entertainment Weekly that Lord flew out to LA to give the rest of the stars the tattoo. In turn, Lord let the actors put the same design on him.