With Black Widow's release nearing, fans are eager to see how Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff faces off against Taskmaster in her long-awaited stand-alone film.
Of particular interest to some is how this film will fit into the wider MCU timeline and what glimpses it will provide into the world as it was in the wake of the Avengers' split in Captain America: Civil War. Most of the team, including Natasha, were on the run at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War and Black Widow may give some glimpse into how those who rejected the Sokovia Accords fared during that time.
While the Avengers may officially be disbanded, their legacy lives on, and that legacy is referenced in new teaser footage from Black Widow.
THE RED GUARDIAN CALLS NATASHA AN AVENGER
In a new clip posted to Youtube from Black Widow, David Harbor's Red Guardian is seen speaking with Natasha and Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova. Addressing Natasha he says "You're not just a spy, you're an Avenger."
The Guardian, clearly a father figure for Yelena and Natasha, also proclaims that he "couldn't be more proud."
The full promo with the scene included can be watched below:
THE AVENGERS' LEGACY LIVES ON
While the team may be defunct, it's clear the world still knows Earth's Mighties Heroes. Reference to individual members of the team as Avengers has continued across projects like Spider-Man: Far from Home, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, WandaVision, and now Black Widow.
While Nick Fury (or Talos posing as him) noted in Far From Home that he didn't have a team anymore, the use of lingo like "Avengers-Level Threat" continues. In previously released footage, the Red Guardian tells Natasha she should have called the Avengers.
Natasha isn't the only one, either. Wanda Maximoff, Vision, Bucky Barnes, and Sam Wilson were all referred to as Avengers in the Disney+ shows at various times, despite some, like Bucky, never officially being part of the team.
Perhaps some of the fallout of the Avengers' split will be investigated in the film. Trailers have made a big deal of Natasha considering the team her family, and that split must have been hard on her. Robert Downey Jr. is set to return as Iron Man for the film to some degree, and William Hurt's Thaddeus Ross—who first set Tony Stark against Captain America—has been seen in footage as well.
Fans eager to see an MCU film on the big screen—along with all the secrets it will reveal—don't have long to wait. Black Widow comes to theaters and Disney+ Premier Access on July 9, 2021.
