Will Scarlett Johansson Return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe Before the Release of ‘Black Widow’?
Scarlett Johansson’s long-awaited solo flick Black Widow will finally hit theaters in May 2021. But will it really be her last appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
According to multiple reports, Black Widow’s story will be part of the upcoming Disney+ series Hawkeye. Does this mean Johansson will return once again as Natasha Romanoff?
Why didn’t Marvel give Scarlett’s Johansson’s Black Widow a funeral in ‘Avengers: Endgame’?
As Screen Rant points out, many fans believe that Avengers: Endgame didn’t properly complete Black Widow’s story. Marvel mostly developed her story in the background of the MCU. All fans really know about her life before she showed up in Iron Man 2 comes from a quote in The Avengers.
“I’ve been compromised. I’ve got red on my ledger. Now I need to wipe it out,” Black Widow said while trying to manipulate Loki.
This quest for redemption ultimately led to her death. Natasha sacrificed herself so Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) could acquire the Soul Stone and reverse Thanos’ snap.
However, unlike Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Natasha didn’t get a funeral or any kind of send-off.
Co-writer Christopher Markus later explained that they didn’t think a funeral for Black Widow was appropriate.
“Tony gets a funeral,” he explained. “Natasha doesn’t. That’s partly because Tony’s this massive public figure and she’s been a cipher the whole time. It wasn’t necessarily honest to the character to give her a funeral.”
Will ‘Hawkeye’ finally complete Scarlett Johansson’s Marvel storyline?
Markus had an excuse for why they didn’t give Black Widow a funeral. But, why did they completely ignore her death in Spider-Man: Far From Home while the world simultaneously mourned Iron Man? Many fans were upset that no one in the MCU seemed to care about the beloved character’s death.
Now, it’s starting to look like they will finally give the character a proper send-off in the Disney+ series Hawkeye. Multiple outlets are claiming that this series is going to be how Marvel completes Black Widow’s story.
This makes a lot of sense, since Natasha was closest to Clint Barton. They first met when he was on a SHIELD mission to kill her. But he eventually realized that wasn’t the right call. They ended up working together for two years and becoming close friends. Clint even named his son Nathaniel after her.
But if Hawkeye finally completes Black Widow’s story, does this mean Johansson will return to the MCU?
New Marvel star Florence Pugh set to appear in ‘Hawkeye’ as the new Black Widow
Marvel comics fans know that Yelena Belova took over as Black Widow when the original was thought to be dead. According to Screen Rant, the expectation is that the MCU will follow a similar direction.
Florence Pugh will star as Yelena Belova along with Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff in Black Widow. The upcoming film jumps back in time and takes place between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War.
Yelena is also an assassin and a longtime friend of Natasha’s. They refer to each other as sisters, as they were trained alongside each other in Russia. In Black Widow, Natasha is expected to pass the baton to Yelena and that will set up her future MCU appearances.
With the lack of a proper send-off for Black Widow, it appears that Marvel is looking to correct that with Hawkeye. But does that mean Johansson will have a cameo? Set photos show that the series is set in 2025, but there’s always the chance of a flashback. Fans will just have to wait and see.
Hawkeye is expected to premiere on Disney+ in the fall of 2021. Black Widow will premiere in theaters on May 7, 2021.
