During the gargantuan climax of 2019's Avengers: Endgame, something special happened. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo pulled an awesome tracking shot out of the bag, taking in all the assorted women characters (sans Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
It was a clear statement of intent, signifying the MCU's willingness to embrace diversity and gender parity in future movies. Comic book films have been traditionally slow off the mark as far as incorporating female heroes are concerned, although the MCU is now catching up. Prior to Endgame, we had Brie Larson's debut in Captain Marvel, and next year (hopefully), Johansson's Natasha Romanoff is resurrected via the magic of prequel storytelling in Black Widow.
One actor who is keen to level the playing field is Letitia Wright. The British star stole the show in 2018's Black Panther, playing the gadget-tastic Shuri, sister of the eponymous Wakandan leader T'Challa/Black Panther (the late Chadwick Boseman). Wright said the time has now come to make good on that empowering moment during Endgame's final battle. Excitingly, that all-female Avengers movie may be closer than we think.
"I don't think we have to fight for it," she told Yahoo. "[Marvel Studios' EVP of Production] Victoria Alonso is very strong about spearheading it, alongside [Marvel Studios President] Kevin Feige. It's only a matter of time before they do it."
Acknowledging the all-powerful presence of Larson's character, Wright added that the movie would "definitely have to have Captain Marvel". On a more personal note, she cited the inspirational nature of Shuri as having "contributed something positive in the world". She explained: "It was always a dream of mine to play someone that can be impactful for not only black women but also for just women around the world and young people".
Wright will next be seen in hard-hitting drama Mangrove, one of director Steve McQueen's Small Axe anthology movies for the BBC. She's set to return as Shuri in Black Panther 2, although with Boseman's tragic passing, the nature of the storyline and the release date remain up in the air. Black Widow's current release date (at the time of writing) is 7th May 2021, kicking off Phase Four of the MCU.
Having been introduced in 2010's Iron Man 2, Scarlett Johansson's ex-Soviet agent now gets her own standalone movie, set between the events of 2016's Captain America: Civil War and 2018's Avengers: Infinity War. Black Widow's storyline sends Romanoff back to Russia where she's pitted against the ruthless Taskmaster, while also reckoning with her shadowy training in the mysterious Red Room. Florence Pugh, David Harbour and Rachel Weisz co-star, with Cate Shortland directing.
Check out the trailer below and tweet us your thoughts on an all-female MCU movie @Cineworld.
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