Marvel Avengers and Black Widow fans rejoice – the long awaited solo film starring the original Avengers’ leading lady may actually become a reality!
It was announced Wednesday that screenwriter Jac Schaeffer is set to write the script for a film that would star Scarlett Johansson as her recurring Marvel Cinematic Universe character Black Widow.
Schaeffer’s screenwriting credits include the 2009 romantic sci-fi film TiMER, the Black List alien invasion comedy The Shower, and upcoming Dirty Rotten Scoundrels remake Nasty Women. She also wrote the screenplay for the recent Disney Animation Studios featurette Olaf’s Frozen Adventure, which debuted in front of Pixar’s Coco in November.
Marvel head Kevin Feige has previously voiced his support for a potential solo Black Widow movie, a sentiment echoed by Johansson herself. In a 2016 interview with Deadline, Feige said that of all the MCU heroes thus far that have yet to score a solo movie, “the one creatively and emotionally that we are most committing to doing is Black Widow.” He added, “We think she’s an amazing character. We think Scarlett Johansson’s portrayal of her is amazing. She’s a lead Avenger and has amazing stories in her own right to tell that we think would be fun to turn into a stand-alone franchise.”
Fan support has also been high, with a 2016 Fandango poll citing Black Widow as the top pick for an Avenger to get a solo film.
Johansson debuted as the Black Widow in 2010’s Iron Man 2, and her character has since continued to star in two Avengers films, two Captain America films, and a much-anticipated third Avengers on the way this spring.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is currently planned out through 2019, which will see the fourth Avengers film. After that, anything could happen.
Via The Wrap and The Hollywood Reporter.
