Black Widow Updates: Release Date & Story | Screen Rant
The next addition to the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe is Black Widow, a prequel solo adventure for late Avenger Natasha Romanoff. Avengers: Endgame - and its predecessor Infinity War - shattered fans with several notable deaths, some of which proved permanent. Of the ones that did, Black Widow's demise might be the most divisive, as many feel her sacrifice came too quickly and easily and could've been avoided somehow. This especially hurt after Endgame presented a Nat that had matured fully into a leader.
For better or worse though, Black Widow is dead, at least as dead as anyone ever really is in a comic book universe. However, death isn't standing in the way of Natasha starring in her own film, finally, after many years of fans asking for one. Lots of Black Widow devotees felt slighted when newcomer Captain Marvel was the first female MCU hero to get her own movie, but better late than never, as Black Widow - the movie - is on its way.
Of course, we all would've seen Black Widow by now were it not for the Coronavirus getting involved. It'll come out eventually though, and when it does, the world will be ready to head back into the Marvel universe. Here's what we know about the film.
As millions of Marvel fans now look back and lament, the Black Widow movie was originally set for release on May 1, 2020. After Coronavirus caused American theaters to shut down, Disney delayed the film to November 6, giving it Eternals' old slot. That date stuck for a while, but Disney decided in September 2020 to push Black Widow back even further, to May 7, 2021, pushing back Eternals and Shang-Chi as a result.
Scarlett Johansson of course leads Black Widow as the titular character. Surrounding her are almost entirely new faces to the MCU. Two returning players include Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (William Hurt), who's confirmed, and Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), who's heavily rumored to appear. Since Black Widow is a prequel, that explains Tony still being alive. Florence Pugh plays Yelena Belova, while Rachel Weisz plays Melina Vostokoff, two other Black Widows. Stranger Things' David Harbour plays Black Widow's cohort Red Guardian, the not quite equal Russian counterpart to Captain America. O-T Fagbenle will play a potential love interest to Natasha, while Ray Winstone plays Dreykov, the head of the Red Room.
Set following the events of Captain America: Civil War, Black Widow sees Natasha returning to her former homeland of Russia, where she's forced to enter an uneasy alliance with past allies Yelena, Melina, and Red Guardian in order to take down a dangerous foe called Taskmaster. Manipulating the Red Room for purposes not clear as of yet, Taskmaster is lethal due to his ability to study and duplicate the fighting styles of his opponents. He can even do it just from watching them on video. Defeating Taskmaster will require Natasha to reckon with her deadly past, and all the red on her ledger. What happened to Black Widow and Hawkeye in Budapest will also finally be revealed.