One embodiment of the present invention is directed to polysubstituted fullerene moieties having a plurality of substituents thereon, selected from the group consisting of hydroxy, oxide, nitro, amino, organocarboxy, amide, and mixtures thereof.Another embodiment is directed toward the preparation of the novel polysubstituted fullerenes. The method of forming polysubstituted fullerenes comprises contacting fullerenes with an electrophilic reagent such as nitronium ion or an organic peracid. When the electrophilic agent is nitronium ion, the fullerene is further contacted with a nucleophilic reagent. Polysubstituted fullerenes comprise a fullerene moiety selected from fullerenes or mixtures thereof having a plurality of substituents thereon.The polysubstituted fullerenes are particularly useful as cross-linking agents in polymers and/or as core building blocks of star polymers.