MEAWW.COM / ENTERTAINMENT / MOVIES

'Black Widow': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and everything you need to know about Natasha Romanoff's upcoming standalone movie

Starring Scarlett Johansson as the Russian assassin, the 2020 film also features David Harbour as The Red Guardian, and Rachel Weiz as Melina, who could turn out to be the villain

If you're a fan of the smoldering redhead, expertly efficient Russian assassin Natasha Romanoff, you would know what a disaster 'Avengers: Endgame' was — not the plot or the movie in general, just the fate that Natasha aka Black Widow was met with.

She sacrificed her life to obtain one of the Infinity Stones — the Soul Stone — and singlehandedly gave the first ray of hope in the dark cloud of gloom that reigned over our favorite superheroes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It was devastating but worry not: our favorite spy is getting her own film as the first MCU standalone movie with a female lead. But that's not the only interesting thing about the movie. Here's all you need to know about it!

Release date

Marvel announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 that the upcoming 'Black Widow' movie is still in the filming stage and will be released in theaters on May 1, 2020. The film was initially meant for a May 2020 release, was then pushed to November 6 due to the coronavirus pandemic and is now releasing on May 7, 2021

Plot

The first-ever Natasha spin-off comes after fans have been rooting for the movie ever since we were introduced to the character in 'Iron Man 2' (2010.) According to the teaser footage revealed by Scarlett Johansson, who has played the role from the start, we see the character in places like Budapest, which is a familiar place for Natasha in almost all Marvel movies.

The teaser shows two fighting sequences of her, but not much else is known about the plot. "I think you'll learn about what Natasha is afraid of, and I think you'll learn about what parts of herself she's afraid of," said Johansson at Marvel’s SDCC 2019 Phase 4 event.

President of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige also confirmed that the film's timeline is set between the events of 'Captain America: Civil War' and 'Avengers: Infinity War'. The movie might explore the dangerous chronicles of Natasha when she was on the run following the Sokovia Accords while also speculatively shedding some light on her past before she became a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. The movie's prime antagonist will be the Taskmaster, "a malicious mime with the power to instantly replicate any physical action they see courtesy of photographic reflexes," reveal reports.

Creator

The story will be based on the character originally created by Stan Lee, scripter Don Rico, and artist Don Heck for the Marvel Comics. The movie will mark the first MCU installment directed solely by a woman — Cate Shortland. The Australian director is known for 'Berlin Syndrome' (2017), 'Lore' (2012), and 'Somersault' (2004). She is on board with 'Blacklist' writer Jac Schaeffer’s script to deliver the kickass Natasha we need. 

Cast:

We'll see Scarlett Johansson reprising her role as the titular Black Widow. Stranger Things' favorite dad, Chief Jim Hopper aka David Harbour will be joining Johansson as Alexei Shoskatov — The Red Guardian — who was the communist response to Captain America.

Florence Pugh will be playing Yelena Belova who seems to have a love/hate relationship with Black Widow, going by the Comic-Con teaser, and has been described as a sister figure to Natasha. The Handmaid's Tale's O-T Fagbenle plays Mason, a character from Natasha’s past who Fagbenle describes as "a fixer".

Rachel Weisz joins as Melina, a mysterious spy who went through the same Black Widow training project that Natasha did. Weisz has said that her character is "very involved in some scientific research", so it's possible that Melina either went through the notorious Red Room that all young female recruits are groomed through to turn into deadly Russian assassins, or she could be the Taskmaster too.

News

Natasha Romanoff has been known for all her black spy attire since her MCU debut, however, the Black Widow will be seen in a white costume in her standalone film.

Comicbook shared images on Day 2 of D23. The white suit and the truncheons were displayed at the expo. The white suit is similar to the black outfit that Romanoff has worn and perhaps it could be her first suit up in the movie before she was assigned the title of ‘Black Widow’.

A special poster for the movie was unveiled at Disney's D23 Expo 2019. Marvel Studios Director of Visual Development & Concept Artist Andy Park shared a snap of the painting on Twitter.

He captioned the post: "BLACK WIDOW!!! Official D23 poster I had the honor of painting. She’s very near & dear to me since it’s the gazillionth time I’ve concept designed/painted her. What a cast & crew! #BlackWidow @MarvelStudios #ScarlettJohansson @Florence_Pugh @DavidKHarbour #RachelWeisz @DisneyD23."

The poster shows Black Widow front-and-center in a cool, new, comics-accurate outfit. The faces of the other main cast members are also seen behind her. Check out the poster below:

On December 3, along with their teaser trailer, Marvel released a brand new teaser poster for the movie that shows the Black Widow in a battle-ready pose, with her insignia looming large in the background.

On February 2, coinciding with the release of the Super Bowl spot teaser trailer, Marvel Entertainment released a set of character posters for the characters.

Trailer

On December 3, Marvel released a teaser trailer for the movie, revealing that the story would be focused on Black Widow facing her past. The teaser reveals the existence of Black Widow's sister, as well as showing David Harbour in the Red Guardian costume for the first time. 

Here's a link to the teaser that was shared by the panel at Comic-Con:

'On February 2, during Super Bowl LIV half-time, a 30 second teaser for 'Black Widow' was revealed. Natasha talks about her first family - before the Avengers - featuring her family in Russia. She also talks about choosing to be who you are vs. who the world wants you to be. The trailer features recycled footage from other trailers, as well as a few glimpses into other scenes.

If you like this, you will love these:

'Wonder Woman'

'Captain Marvel'

'Elektra'

'X-Men: The Dark Phoenix'

'Catwoman'