The Carnivalization of the Superhero Film: The Antihero as a Figure of Cultural Transgression in the Context of Mikhail Bakhtin's Theory

<jats:p>This article explores the transformation of superhero cinema in the first quarter of the twenty-first century and the rise of the antihero as a central figure in contemporary popular culture. Increasingly, superhero films depart from the classical model of the morally flawless savior, foregrounding protagonists who operate within zones of ethical ambiguity. This shift invites a reconsideration of the genre as a cultural mechanism that reflects both a crisis of the heroic narrative and broader changes in the collective imagination. Despite the popularity of antiheroic figures, the phenomenon remains undertheorized, particularly with regard to the systemic nature of carnivalesque strategies in the genre. The study aims to identify the mechanisms of carnivalization in contemporary superhero cinema through close analysis of "Deadpool" (2016), "Joker" (2019), and "Birds of Prey" (2020), drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of carnival. The analysis shows that the antiheroes in these films enact key elements of the carnivalesque worldview: grotesque corporeality, profanation, eccentricity, and the inversion of hierarchies, thereby destabilizing dominant narratives of heroism, masculinity, and social order. This enables the genre to renew itself through the symbolic subversion of its own foundations; at the same time, however, carnivality proves to be inherently ambivalent, combining critical potential with full embeddedness in the logic of commercial production. The study further shows that the carnivalization of the genre constitutes a systemic cultural logic that cannot be reduced to any single studio or franchise. The article concludes that the antihero operates as a cultural symptom of a condition in which neither full acceptance nor radical rejection of the existing order is possible – a figure that holds popular culture in a productive state of ironic relativity and dialogism. The article is addressed to researchers in the fields of cultural studies, philosophy of culture, film studies, and media studies.</jats:p>