Black Widow is undoubtedly one of the coolest comic characters to ever be created. That’s probably why her sacrifice in Avengers: Endgame was so heartbreaking. Obviously, she would get her own solo movie one way or the other at some point, but she is getting it only now at the beginning of Phase Four.
Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages to such timing as well as many factors influencing the success or failure of the film. Here are 5 reasons why Black Widow will be good and 5 why it won’t be.
It Won’t Be: Black Widow Is Dead In The MCU
Perhaps the most common complaint you will hear about this movie is that Natasha is already dead which is why there is no point in making the film. Why would she even need one after her character’s story has ended? It is too late now, even though she did deserve her trilogy as other characters got.
In addition to that, Black Widow will supposedly be set in the period between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. This means that it will stray away from the main MCU storyline and jump back in time which is quite rare for this franchise (Captain Marvel would be an exception).
It Will Be: There’s Likely To Be Only One Black Widow Movie
After so many years of fans literally begging for her solo movie, it still wouldn’t be a surprise if this turned out to be the only one made compared to the trilogies Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor got. And while this might first sound like something bad, a single Black Widow movie can actually be even better than a trilogy.
One film means that the filmmakers will be more dedicated and more invested in the story. They will want to make it the best it can be. When it comes to trilogies, some of the filmmakers can expect others to do the job better than they do it, but single films require more passion, dedication, and emotional investment.
It Won’t Be: It Looks Like There’s No Hawkeye
Considering the long and complicated history between Black Widow and Hawkeye, it’s a pity we will not see him appear in the film (at least, according to the official cast list).
Unfortunately, Hawkeye not being present in Black Widow means we will never get so many questions answered. How did their friendship start? When did Clint introduce Natasha to his family? And most importantly: what happened in Budapest?
It Will Be: It Has An Excellent Crew
It’s not just the story that matters, but also the people bringing this story to the screen. The movie is directed by Cate Shortland who is known for her award-winning films. As always, Kevin Feige is producing the movie while the screenplay was written by Eric Pearson who previously co-wrote Thor: Ragnarok and worked on some Marvel features and short films.
The cinematographer, Gabriel Beristain, has previously worked on a variety of films and TV series including Agent Carter and two Blade movies (which are known for their stylish, dark and gritty cinematography and atmosphere). Alexandre Desplat, who is writing the soundtrack for Black Widow, is one of the most well-known film composers of our time, but you probably already noticed the stylized music in the trailers.
It Won’t Be: We Won’t See The Winter Soldier
Another character that will seemingly be absent from the film is Winter Soldier. Like Hawkeye, he has a lot of history with Black Widow. For instance, he was involved with the Soviets for some time and even supposedly trained Black Widow herself which was hinted on in one scene in Captain America: Civil War (when Winter Soldier is attacking Natasha and she asks him if he won’t even remember her).
In the comics, the two were even in a romantic relationship at some point, but it is unlikely that we will see this storyline play out on the big screen which is a huge letdown for all the WinterWidow - the name of their pairing - shippers.
It Will Be: There’s A Great Cast
Alright, the crew is great, but what about the cast? Scarlett Johansson will be returning to her role as Black Widow aka Natasha Romanoff, but there will be some notable additions too such as David Harbour (known for Stranger Things and the latest Hellboy) who will be playing Red Guardian aka Alexei Shostakov, Natasha’s husband in the comics.
We will also get to see other Black Widows who were trained in the Red Room along with Natasha. Rachel Weisz (known for The Mummy movies and her latest film The Favourite) will portray Melina Vostokoff and Florence Pugh (known for Lady Macbeth, Midsommar, and Little Women) will portray Yelena Belova.
It Won’t Be: A New Black Widow
Speaking of Black Widows, there have been rumors that Yelena Belova, Florence Pugh’s character, might replace Natasha Romanoff and become the new Black Widow of the MCU in the post-Endgame era. Obviously, not all the fans will be happy about it if this is the case.
That being said, one of the popular fan theories at the moment is that Yelena, Alexei, Melina, and everyone else related to Natasha will die in this film which could be a possible explanation for why Natasha doesn’t talk about them in the movies we have had so far.
It Will Be: The Rumors & Set Photos Look Great
Even though Tony Stark is dead, there were rumors about him possibly having a cameo in the movie. In this case, unused footage from Captain America: Civil War will be used. In fact, there were even rumors that Hawkeye and Winter Soldier will appear in the film, but we won’t know the truth until it is released.
Before the trailers were uploaded, there were some set photos circulating online that showed Scarlett Johansson and some other actors in action. The Taskmaster in the trailers also looks pretty cool and one theory suggests that he is proof of Hawkeye’s appearance in the film (Taskmaster is known for adopting the tactics of his enemies).
It Won’t Be: It’s Post-Endgame Era
As mentioned earlier, we are now entering the post-Endgame era. Avengers: Endgame was probably the peak of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with many fans either predicting for the MCU no longer being the same as before or even going downhill from now on. Add that to the fact that Black Widow is dead and you have quite a sad picture.
Nevertheless, the trailer Marvel released just a few days ago (with footage from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, WandaVision, and Loki series) seems to have excited fans and given them something new to talk about. Who knows, perhaps everything is not as bad as it seems?
It Will Be: The Marvel Formula Still Works
Say what you will about the Marvel movies, but you can’t deny that the so-called “Marvel formula” works impeccably every time. Though this is also the reason why so many superhero movies feel the same, it is also the reason why they regularly get outstanding critical and audience ratings.
Marvel doesn’t look like it will be changing this tactic anytime soon, so there is a big chance that Black Widow will be a critical and commercial success like all the MCU movies before it. And with the expansion that the series will bring, the movies might become even richer in detail.
