Though we’ve already had one post-“Avengers: Endgame” MCU film, with “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” the new phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn’t really begin until next year’s “Black Widow” film. And even though we’re only half a year away from the Scarlett Johansson-led flick from hitting theaters all around the world, fans still don’t have much of a clue what the film is about.
In a new video from Vanity Fair, Johansson teases that exact question, while doing her Marvel-trained best at giving an answer without actually answering much of anything.
“It’s a film about self-forgiveness. And it’s a film about family,” revealed the actress. “I think in life, we sort of come of age many times and you have these moments when you’re a transitional phase and you move beyond it. And I think in the ‘Black Widow’ standalone film, the character, when we find her, is at a moment of real crisis. And throughout the film, by facing herself and all the things that make her her, she’s able to come through that crisis on the other side and is able to reset in a space where she’s a more grounded self-possessed person. So, that’s her journey.”
Johansson doesn’t really give much away with her description of the plot and themes found in “Black Widow.” But in a separate interview with Vanity Fair, she does go a bit further to explain what the solo film ISN’T. Namely, don’t expect this prequel to go full origin story.
“I did not want it to be an origin story,” Johansson said. “I did not want it to be an espionage story. I didn’t want it to feel superficial at all. I only wanted to do it if it actually fit where I was with that character.”
READ MORE: William Hurt Rumored To Appear In Marvel Studios’ Upcoming ‘Black Widow’
She continued, “I had spent such a long time peeling those layers away—I felt that unless we got to something deep, then there was no reason to make it. Because I did my job in ‘Endgame,’ and actually felt satisfied with that. I would have been happy to let that be it. So there had to be a reason to do it other than just to milk something.”
If “Black Widow” isn’t an origin story and it isn’t a spy story, then we’re really interested to see what the actual plot of the film is going to be. When it was initially announced, fans just assumed that the movie would explore her personal life more, specifically her time training in the Red Room (only briefly teased in “Avengers: Age of Ultron”).
And while it appears that we’ll be getting some of that, mainly through the characters played by Rachel Weisz and Florence Pugh, who are rumored to play other Black Widows, Johansson is teasing something very different than what is expected.
And if that’s the case, then we’re definitely excited what Marvel Studios has in store when “Black Widow” opens on May 5, 2020.
