The death of Natasha Romanoff inAvengers: Endgamewas just one of the moments that devastated Marvel fans two years ago, and discovering it was going to happen was almost as tough forScarlett Johanssonwhen she was told about the fate of her character. WhileBlack Widowhas brought Romanoff back for one final outing, it has been a strange scenario for fans knowing, and being reminded in the movie’s post credit scene, that she is dead as far as the future of the Marvel timeline is concerned.
After sacrificing herself in place of Clint Barton, akaHawkeye, to acquire the soul stone on Vormir inAvengers: Endgame, Romanoff had one of the more memorable deaths to have happened in the MCU and also helped the rest of the Avengers ultimately defeat Thanos. It was certainly better than fading away, and Johansson truly believes that she took the news of what was to happen reasonably well…at least in public. She described the moment she found out during a call with Kevin Feige.
“I was home on the phone with [Marvel Studios President] Kevin Feige, and I don’t know how I reacted. I think I was like, ‘OK… ' [laughs] I think all of us sort of… we kind of all would joke with one another about who was going to get offed inEndgame. I was heartbroken about it, but I think I took it like a champ. I cried in the shower later, but nobody saw that part.”
Having played the character for the past decade, you can see how it would be a hard hit to take. In the end though, however she reacted was not going to change Kevin Feige’s mind about her fate, and like most actors, there comes a time when even a long serving character must take a bow. Johansson said in a previous interview that when she came to terms with it,the decision Natasha took to sacrifice herself over Clintwas something that fit perfectly with the character that she had become.
While we have now seen the end of Johansson’s time in the MCU, which in effect is really a missing piece of her story, there was one point when the actress had quite a few reservations about returning forBlack Widow. Unsure of whether it would pose a creative challenge after everything she accomplished during her years playing the character. It seems thatthe box office decided that her final outing was certainly worth returning for.
InBlack Widow, following the events ofCaptain America: Civil War, Natashafinds herself on the run which leads to her reconnecting to her past in more ways than one. Family ties and old adversaries all come into play, taking the character on a more personal journey than any of her previous outings and also filling in the details of her past teased in her Avengers appearances. By the end of the movie, it feels like we now know more about what makes Natasha tick, and why she acts as she does during her time in the MCU. As a swan song,Black Widowis a worthy ending to Natasha’s story and a fitting start to Marvel’s Phase Four slate. This news comes to us fromCinema Blend.
