David Harbour steals this first-look teaser as the Russian super-soldier Red Guardian who may or may not have gotten too fat for his super-suit.
Finally, after what feels like a decade of waiting, fans are getting their first glimpse of Scarlett Johansson in action as the star of her very own "Black Widow" film. And it looks like she is kicking butt and taking no prisoners.
Considering this is a character with absolutely no super-powers or super-armor or even a super-shield, there was a chance for this to be a more grounded, floor-level exploration of what it is to be a hero in this larger-than-life world. Or they could always have just gone the James Bond route and amped everything up to eleven. Well, this is the MCU so we'll give you one guess which route they went.
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View StoryDon't get us wrong, it looks like there are some nice character moments for Natasha as she reconnects with "family" back in Russia, and we're already totally in love with the incredible confidence (and epic beard) of David Harbour's Red Guardian. You're damned right the suit still fits. And never listen to anyone who tells you, "You got fat."
Even if you totally got fat. Hey, Thor made it work in "Avengers: Endgame."
Speaking of that film -- and you kind of have to when this is a "Black Widow" film -- it's not yet clear how this one will ultimately connect to that one, or if it will even bother. And it definitely needs to go there at some point and explain something. What we do know is that this story takes place after the events of "Captain America: Civil War," but it needs to be much more than just a flashback standalone film.
Considering this is the epic start to the post-"Infinity Saga" era of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we're expecting some jaw-dropping twist or reveal that will set the stage for the next epic journey for our modern age of heroes. "Captain Marvel" found a way to be a period piece and still move the stick forward in the MCU, so we imagine "Black Widow" will do the same.
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View StoryWhat we don't know for certain is if this is Johansson's swan song in the role. Don't get us wrong, things seemed pretty definitive last time we saw her, but these are superheroes we're talking about. We'll assume the role is hers as long as she wants it. At the same time, we do meet a couple of other Black Widows here, and there is a legacy to that name in the source material as well.
And Florence Pugh is an absolute beast in this teaser, going toe to toe with Natasha in a beautifully choreographed fight sequence that is both intimately beautiful and deadly serious. If this is how family hugs in Natasha's family, we're kind of glad we're not a part of it.
Rounding out the cast are Rachel Weisz, as the matriarch (and another Black Widow) and O-T Fagbenle as a new romantic interest for Natasha. Actually, he's interested, but we're kind of hoping she's not so much. Especially as we got a glimpse of our boy Hawkeye in this one and there's some unresolved story yet to play there.
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View StoryOne thing's absolutely for sure, Johansson clearly still loves playing this character and Marvel isn't short-changing her big-screen solo debut at all. There are some truly awe-inspiring visuals, incredible fight scenes and stunning scenes. Marvel has done space and rom-coms and family dramas, so it's about time the MCU gives us a bona fide spy movie.
"Black Widow" is scheduled to hit theaters (and hit hard) on May 1, 2020.
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