Florence Pugh is set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the Phase Four-launching Black Widow movie, the Lady Macbeth and Fighting With My Family actress set to take on the role of Yelena Belova, sister-figure to Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff and a fellow spy from the Black Widow Program.
In the comics, Yelena succeeds Natasha as the second Black Widow, and the expectation among fans is that Pugh’s character may well follow that same trajectory in the MCU following Black Widow’s death in Avengers: Endgame, with director Cate Shortland even hinting at a “passing of the baton” in the upcoming solo film.
Well, if this is the case, it seems we may have some indication as to where Yelena will pop up next, as a rumour from The Direct claims that Pugh is set to appear in Marvel’s Disney+ series Hawkeye, which has just started production this week. Meanwhile, entertainment YouTuber Grace Randolph claims that Pugh is indeed going to feature in the Hawkeye series but will first return for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier – potentially explaining why the series remains without a premiere date, as Black Widow needs to arrive first.
As yet, these reports are unconfirmed, but given Hawkeye’s history with Natasha, it would certainly make sense for Clint to cross paths with Yelena – and perhaps provide her with an introduction to the rest of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes at some point further down the line?
In Marvel Studios’ action-packed spy thriller “Black Widow,” Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.
Black Widow is being directed by Cate Shortland (Lore) and sees Scarlett Johansson reprising her role as Natasha Romanoff alongside Florence Pugh (Fighting With My Family) as Yelena Belova, O-T Fagbenle (The Handmaid’s Tale) as Mason, David Harbour (Stranger Things) as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian, Rachel Weisz (The Favourite) as Melina Vostokoff/Iron Maiden, Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast) as Dreykov and Olivier Richters (The King’s Man) in an as-yet-unrevealed role.
