There is still a way for Black Widow to appear in the MCU’s Avengers 5 without ruining Natasha Romanoff’s death in Avengers: Endgame. Scarlett Johansson’s time in the MCU is getting a new lease of life thanks to the Black Widow solo movie, but the codename could live on even longer than that.
Natasha’s death in Avengers: Endgame allowed Hawkeye to retrieve the Soul Stone and capped her multi-film arc by erasing the “red in [her] ledger” she earned from her early years spent laboring under the belief she was an irredeemable person. With that, the Avengers lost a founding member, an extremely skilled fighter, and an essential voice on their team; in short, they lost a Black Widow.
The Black Widow movie is opening up a window into Natasha’s past, exploring what happened to Scarlett Johansson’s character between Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. While audiences shouldn’t expect her fate to be retconned, that doesn’t mean the Black Widow mantle has to die with her. Here’s how Black Widow can still appear in the MCU and, namely, in Avengers 5.
Black Widow Introduces Yelena Belova
Black Widow will set up a face-off between Natasha and longtime frenemy Yelena Belova (played by Florence Pugh). The Black Widow San Diego Comic-Con footage implies Yelena will still be an adversary ay the beginning of the movie: she and Natasha will have to fight it out before they can ostensibly come together to take on the actual villain of the film, Taskmaster. The footage also proves Yelena is every bit as skilled as Natasha, returning every punch, kick, and blow thrown her way.
Essentially, Black Widow will reveal a new, worthy agent to take up the Black Widow mantle for the new Avengers team: Yelena.
Black Widow Is A Universal Codename
Natasha isn’t the only Black Widow in the world. In the comics, Natasha and Yelena are two of a group of 28 orphaned girls taken in by the Red Room Academy, a division of the U.S.S.R.’s Department X (the team who created the Winter Soldier). The girls are trained to be world-class assassins and spies and have been genetically enhanced to give them an advantage. They are all referred to as Black Widows, dispatched across the world on missions at the behest of the Red Room.
This concept will most likely be introduced in Black Widow, especially if the film follows the 1999 comics arc wherein Natasha learns the Red Room is still operational and must team with Yelena to bring it down while also working to turn her into a good guy. The MCU establishing the name “Black Widow” is a widely-applied name rather than one specific to Natasha will help fans get used to the inevitability that someone - probably Yelena - will step in as Black Widow in the MCU.
Yelena Belova Becomes the New Black Widow In The Comics
In the comics, Natasha was eventually able to help Yelena see the benefit of actually being a hero and working for the good of others. When Natasha was killed off in the comics, Yelena picked up Natasha’s mantle, working in search of redemption and a chance to use her training for good.
This arc could be told across the MCU’s Phases 4 and 5. After all, other heroes are taking up the mantles left by other original Avengers, so why shouldn’t Yelena do the same? Spider-Man will likely pick up where Iron Man left off; Falcon will become the new Captain America in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier; Kate Bishop will rise up as the new Hawkeye in Hawkeye; Jane Foster will become the Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder. This means there is room here for Yelena to ascend as the next Black Widow and fulfill Natasha’s role for the next generation of Avengers.
Next: Every Marvel Phase 5 Movie Confirmed To Be In Development
- Black Widow Release Date: 2021-07-09
