Black Widow Director Cate Shortland Explains Why Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff has No Superpowers

The Russo brothers-directed Avengers: Endgame went on to become the highest-grossing films of all time. One of the biggest takeaways, albeit a sad one, for Marvel fans was the manner of Scarlett Johansson’s character Black Widow’s death. Many were left disappointed.

Cate Shortland, the director of the forthcoming film Black Widow, has said that Natasha Romanoff, played by Johansson, is the only character in the Avengers without superpowers. She was speaking to Total Film while promoting Black Widow alongside actress Florence Pugh.

After asserting that Black Widow has no superpowers, Shortland claimed that the lack of the same is her strength. “We saw that as a strength, because she always has to dig really deep to get out of shit situations. And we just put her in a lot of hard situations,” she added.

The director revealed that she thought of many real-life situations for the Black Widow film. For instance, about the women who travel to train stations and what happens to them on being attacked.

Shortland wanted to work on that aspect while rendering Black Widow. Natasha is resilient and strong on the inside even when she comes across hurdles. She said that the Marvel Cinematic Universe offering has no shades of grey. The women in the film strive to be strong and are assassins but the need to discuss their abuse remains alive.

“So you’re not just watching her fly through situations, knowing she’ll get out of it. You want to see her grit and determination. And that’s what we got,” she concluded.

Pugh, who plays Yelena Belova, Natasha’s sister, said that the film is about how these women get unintentional hysterectomies from the age of eight.

Johansson said that the upcoming film will give “resolution” to fans for the character. She assured that it will “honour” Natasha’s death in Avengers: Endgame.

Black Widow is currently slated for a theatrical release on November 6, 2020 in the United States and October 28 in the United Kingdom. The MCU Phase 4 movie also features Rachel Weisz, David Harbour and O.T. Fagbenle.