When Scarlett Johansson was initially cast as Black Widow, I was incredibly skeptical, especially considering that Emily Blunt (Edge Of Tomorrow) had originally been up for the role. I had nothing against Johansson but when you love a character you’ve been reading about for years, you want everything to be perfect. When Iron Man 2 came out and introduced Black Widow as a cheap, tacked-on character to set up The Avengers, I was beyond pissed. My anger wasn’t directed at her acting, as she was fine in the role, but the movie failed to make her important in any way. There was no reason for her to be in that film and making that her introduction seemed like a slap in the face. That, however, changed when the character was finally given a chance to shine in The Avengers. It didn’t make Iron Man 2 any less terrible, but it did make me love Johansson in the role and made me want to see more of her.
Ever since we have seen her several times in the MCU. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, she was not only important to Captain America’s development in the film, she was downright indispensable (as was Nick Fury). The same can easily be said for Avengers: Age Of Ultron and, most recently, Captain America: Civil War. However, despite her being given a decent buildup in other films, Black Widow couldn’t seem to get her own movie. Hell, the woman couldn’t even get her own action figure. It’s a shame, really. Johansson only gets better with each passing film and, as anyone who has read the comics can tell you, there is enough backstory with Natasha Romanoff to easily warrant a movie. The controversy surrounding this only got worse when Captain Marvel was announced for Phase 3. I’m sorry but who the hell cares about Captain Marvel? You have a perfectly good female character in your franchise to base a movie on so why sideline her in favor of another B-List character? I just never got it and it’s something that has bugged me and many others for awhile now.
Well, the news recently came in that all of our backlashing (Justified, I assure you) at the studio has finally paid off, as Marvel Producer Kevin Feige has confirmed that the studio is “committing” to a Black Widow film. In an interview with Deadline, Feige was asked about which of the characters in Captain America: Civil War would likely get their own solo film in Phase 4. Well, the only two characters unconfirmed were Hawkeye and Black Widow (Black Panther and Spider-Man: Homecoming have already been confirmed for Phase 3) and Feige had this to say on the matter:
“We’ve announced the next nine movies, ten counting Civil War, through the end of 2019. Where we go beyond that are ongoing discussions that we’ll focus on in the next few years because we have a lot to do before then. Of the characters that you’ve just mentioned, I would say certainly the one creatively and emotionally that we are most committing to doing is Black Widow.”
This should be both a shock and a pleasant surprise to those who have wanted to see a Black Widow movie. Feige continued on; “We think she’s an amazing character. We think Scarlett Johansson’s portrayal of her is amazing. She’s a lead Avenger and has amazing stories in her own right to tell that we think would be fun to turn into a standalone franchise.“
Personally, this is the best news I’ve heard come out of Marvel Studios in awhile. Personally, I think they are biting off more than they can chew with ten films already green-lit to be released in the next four years (9 if you don’t count Captain America: Civil War). However, Black Widow could lead Phase 4 in a new and exciting direction. This character is the female equivalent of Jason Bourne. She’s a spy, she’s an assassin, she’s an absolute badass in every way and all these traits alone could support an action film series or even a series of spy thrillers. Personally, I think they should make the first film a prequel to the MCU (in the vein of Captain America: The First Avenger) involving her past and all the horrible crimes she committed before becoming an Avenger. This would also be a good basis for establishing her first encounter with Cliff Barton (Hawkeye). They clearly have a past together and it would be an interesting concept to explore. It should have been explored in Phase 1 instead of rushing the horrendous Avengers trailer that was Iron Man 2, but I digress. Here’s to the bright future of this magnificent character.
So what do you think about Black Widow having her own film? Be sure to let us know in the comments and stick around for more content, right here at TheNerdStash.com.
Captain America: Civil War is currently in theaters with Doctor Strange set to hit the big screen on November 4th, 2016.
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