‘Avengers: Endgame’ brought Natasha Romanoff’s life to an end, so it would have been easy to assume that the ‘Black Widow‘ solo movie would serve as an origin story for the Scarlett Johansson character. Now that we know the time frame this film takes place in, an origin tale makes that impossible and Johansson is all for it:
“‘I did not want it to be an origin story. I did not want it to be an espionage story. I didn’t want it to feel superficial at all.”
With Black Widow’s role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe always falling back to her spycraft, time with S.H.I.E.L.D., and mysterious past, it feels that not being “an espionage story” was a bold choice.
It also is one that makes a lot of sense.
The upcoming release of ‘Black Widow’ is said to take place after the events of ‘Captain America: Civil War’ where she was already an Avenger but no longer a full-time spy. While these were skills she happily utilized throughout the franchise, they were not something which would push the character closer to the redemption she would find before sacrificing herself to bring back half the galaxy.
RELATED: ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Writer Confirms Black Widow Erased The Red In Her Ledger
As to what the actress wanted in the first female focussed Marvel Studios film:
“I only wanted to do it if it actually fit where I was with that character. I had spent such a long time peeling those layers away—I felt that unless we got to something deep, then there was no reason to make it. Because I did my job in Endgame, and actually felt satisfied with that, I would have been happy to let that be it. So there had to be a reason to do it other than just to milk something.”
We know that there is a lot of trauma and violence in Black Widow’s past, and we’re going to be seeing a lot of that dealt with here.
“The film talks about a lot of tough stuff. It deals with a lot of trauma and pain. And I hope this film is empowering for people because I think Natasha is a very empowering person and an inspiring person in a lot of ways. She has overcome so much, and she’s brave. And so by elevating the genre I mean I hope that it can be both explosive and dynamic and have all that great fun stuff that goes with the genre, but I hope that we can also talk about, you know, self-doubt and insecurity and shame and disappointment and regret and all that stuff too.”
I’m eager to see how we’ll see Natasha dealing with who she was, compared to the woman she has become. Facing a messy past is never easy, but we’ve never seen Romanoff back down from a fight, physically or emotionally.
Are you looking forward to checking out ‘Black Widow’? Do you feel that this will be the last time we see Scarlett Johansson in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Share your thoughts in the comments below, True Believers!
‘Black Widow’ will be sneaking into your local theater on May 1st, 2020!
Source: Vanity Fair
