Spider-Man: Brand New Day stayed grounded, as much as a movie about mind control and the Hulk could be. The larger MCU events were largely an afterthought, with the focus on Peter Parker and his struggles to maintain a social life while also serving New York City as its greatest hero. One character broke through the roadblock, though: Yelena Belova, a member of the New Avengers. Despite only appearing briefly in Brand New Day, Yelena took a huge leap in her superhero career, one that Avengers: Doomsday might be ignoring.
Yelena's next MCU appearance puts her in unfamiliar territory. Of course, she spent most of her life working for the Red Room. Her sister, Natasha Romanoff, helped show her that there was more to life than working alone. After Natasha's death, Yelena joined the Thunderbolts and tried to do some good in the world. She was rewarded by becoming one of the New Avengers' leaders and being afforded the oppurtunity to adopt the Black Widow moniker that her sister once held.
Brand New Day confirmed Yelena's new codename when she helped Peter Parker solve his Jean Grey mystery. But the creative team working on Doomsday clearly didn't get the memo. A line of tie-in Bitty Pops posted on X by Marvel Updates includes a Yelena figure. However, the packaging refers to her by her first name, not her superhero name.
Yelena isn't the only one getting this treatment. Johnny Storm's Bitty Pop uses his full name and doesn't mention his fiery alter ego, even though his teammate Mister Fantastic is on a codename basis with Funko. The difference between the two situations is that Johnny isn't stepping into Avengers-sized shoes.
Sure, the original Human Torch, Jim Hammond, is finding a second wind ahead of his appearance in VisionQuest later this year. But everyone knows that Johnny is the Human Torch; there's really no argument to the contrary. Yelena, on the other hand, is still clearly in her sister's shadow and will have to go to great lengths to step out of it.
Marvel Studios could've easily done Florence Pugh's character a solid by making sure all her merchandise featured her codename, leaving no room for confusion when Doomsday hits theaters. Instead, the powers that be have seemingly thrown her to the wolves. The only way to make things right is to put her on a new path that lets her write her own story.
Black Widow Isn't the Only Potential Codename for the MCU's Yelena Belova
Yelena took her sister's death in Avengers: Endgame rather hard. Valentina Allegra de Fontaine informed the trained killer that Clint Barton had something to do with Natasha's death, setting up a showdown in Hawkeye. Clint was able to convince Yelena that he only ever wanted the best for Natasha and would never hurt her. After that moment, Yelena tried to turn over a new leaf and serve the world in a way that would've made her sister proud.
With that in mind, it makes all the sense in the world for Yelena to want to build on her sister's legacy. The only issue is that Marvel Studios clearly isn't ready to let go of Natasha from a marketing perspective. Despite that big announcement in Brand New Day, the company turned right around and acted like it never happened. That's not fair to Yelena, so she should try something new that Kevin Feige and Co. can't gloss over.
In the comics, Yelena isn't Natasha's sister, but they still have a significant connection. Black Widow and Yelena battled a number of times before setting their differences aside and working together. While Yelena borrowed the Black Widow title from Natasha for a while, she eventually wanted to forge her own path and started calling herself White Widow.
The MCU has yet to burn the White Widow name. It's almost as if it's saving it for a rainy day. Well, that day might be coming in Doomsday as Doctor Doom begins his assault on the multiverse. Titles probably don't seem like much when the fate of everything and everyone is on the line. But Avengers movies are where heroes make names for themselves. If Yelena doesn't have one that fits, she'll need to pivot, and White Widow is as good a backup as any.
Now, a name change won't matter much if Yelena meets her end in Doomsday or its sequel, Avengers: Secret Wars. However, it's hard to imagine Marvel Studios cutting ties with Pugh after she appeared in arguably its most successful movie. There's surely more on the horizon for Yelena, no matter what codename she's going by.
