Thomas Roach on why Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow will never have a solo movie…
Marvel Studios has expressed an interest in developing a movie with a female lead, which has led many to assume that the character of Black Widow will eventually get her own movie. Kevin Feige has even said that a Black Widow movie with Scarlett Johansson is something that they might want to do in the near future. However, despite Johansson’s star power, it’s difficult to see Marvel going down this path. Black Widow is currently the only female Avenger, although that will change when the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) is introduced in Avengers Age Of Ultron, but the fact is that the character is nothing more than a supporting player and a lower-tier Avenger, and a film featuring her as the lead would not work out as well as many would hope.
Black Widow has been in three Marvel movies to date with a fourth on the way, but each time she has never been the focus at all. We were first introduced to her in Iron Man 2 in which she only had one action scene and was pretty much there for eye candy. In The Avengers she was able to get more screen time, but was very much part of the team and was more of a background character than a lead. Her latest appearance was in Captain America: The Winter Soldier where she had a bigger role yet again, but at best she was Captain America’s sidekick.
Black Widow just seems like a supporting character and a film solely focused on her would struggle to keep audiences interested. Johansson has just starred in the movie Lucy in which she plays a badass female protagonist, which has received mixed reviews. That’s not to say that she can’t be taken seriously as an action star, but the character of Black Widow underwhelms when compared to other Marvel heroes. She does not have any superpowers and having a movie with her as the focus would seem to be a step backwards for Marvel. The studio has just done Guardians of the Galaxy and is looking at doing Doctor Strange. Marvel is expanding into the cosmic worlds and diving into the realms of magic. Alongside these, would audiences be impressed with a non-super powered acrobat?
If Marvel is going to have a female lead then Ms. Marvel / Captain Marvel, is possibly the best choice. Having a character with superpowers, as well as being introduced in their own movie, would surely lead to greater success that a Black Widow movie would.
Do you think Black Widow deserves a solo movie? Let us know in the comments…
Thomas Roach
Originally published July 31, 2014. Updated April 12, 2018.
