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Black Widow Set Photos May Reveal Florence Pugh's Role
Photos taken on the set of the solo Black Widow movie may indicate Florence Pugh's mysterious role in the film is as Yelena Belova. It was previously reported in early 2019 that Pugh was cast in Black Widow in a significant role, news that was later confirmed. However, Marvel remains tight-lipped about the character she will portray.
Until recently, the current Black Widow was Natasha Romanova, as played by Scarlett Johansson. However, in Avengers: Endgame, Natasha met her end when she sacrificed herself for the Soul Stone, an item needed to help the Avengers finally defeat Thanos. Given her fate in that film, the solo movie will likely focus on her early life and perhaps even provide an origin story about how she became Black Widow. A rewrite of the movie began in March, suggesting the film would add a supporting female role. That role likely became the one Pugh stepped into.
New set photos tweeted by Best of Widows could offer some insight into who Pugh portrays in the movie. The photos seem to confirm previous rumors she's playing Yelena Belova. The images show stunt dummies, presumably for Pugh and Johansson. One of the crates they were shipped in, though, feature the name "Yelena." Although it isn't confirmation Pugh is portraying Belova, it's a pretty good indication the rumors are true.
In the comics, Natasha and Yelena were enemies at first, although they eventually become allies. Yelena then went on to become the second woman to take on the title of Black Widow. These photos suggest the MCU could soon have a new Black Widow. Phase 3 of the MCU ends in 2019 with the release of Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Marvel hasn't offered a lot of details about its plans for phase 4, but Yelena's inclusion in the Black Widow film could indicate the direction the studio plans on going with the character.
There are many Marvel fans, though, who feel like Natasha's character never got the respect she deserved, particularly after some clunky writing in Avengers: Age of Ultron when she admits that she can't have children, making it seem as if that is somehow connected to her worth. Things didn't get much better for Natasha when the writers chose to sacrifice her in Endgame, presumably over the fact that she didn't have children, whereas the alternative, Clint, did. Here's hoping the MCU treats the next Black Widow with more respect, if it is indeed Yelena.
