JOHANSSON’S BLACK WIDOW IS BACK IN “CAPTAIN AMERICA” SEQUEL

Joining Steve Rogers aka Captain America in his latest adventure, Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” is familiar ally Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow, played once again by topnotch actress Scarlett Johansson.

 

Photo courtesy of Marvel Pictures

Natasha has become Steve Rogers’ closest ally in the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization as she helps him adjust to his new role. “When we first meet Natasha and Steve, it’s kind of in real time, so a couple of years have gone by and they have worked on many different missions together,” informs Johansson. “They have gotten to know each other better, so they have more ease and banter to their conversations. I really like the dynamic because their friendship is far more interesting to me than if they were to have a romantic relationship.”

 

For Chris Evans, having his longtime friend Johansson as his co-star makes it easier to ground the characters relationship in reality. “I’ve known Scarlett for over ten years now. She’s like a sister,” says Evans. “We’ve done four movies now, and it’s just so nice having a history with someone off camera because I think that bleeds onscreen. Cap and Black Widow are very different people; it’s kind of like this odd pairing. Her morality is questionable and Cap’s a Boy Scout. She makes her living by lying and Cap couldn’t do it if he tried. When they are at the point where they really can’t trust anyone,it becomes an interesting relationship because it involves trusting someone you don’t know that well.”

 

For Johansson, the film was an opportunity to delve deeper into the character’s cryptic past, which has only been glossed over in “Iron Man 2” and “Marvel’s The Avengers.” “We continue to open up the story and give little tidbits and throw the bone out once in a while as to where she came from and what her background is,” relates Johansson. “There’s a lot to explore in the past but certainly where she’s going too. When you take a character who’s had the past that she’s had, who has seen the darkest places, over time she appreciates what the right thing is in her mind and starts to understand humanity.”

 

Adds director Anthony Russo, “We couldn’t resist the idea of putting those two characters together because Cap has such a strong moral code and Black Widow lies for a living; it’s fire and water. To force those two into a situation where they have to engage each other and trust each other made for some great drama.”

 

“Captain America: The Winter Soldier"  is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

 

In addition to "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," Marvel Studios will release a slate of films based on the Marvel characters including "Guardians of the Galaxy" on August 1, 2014; "Avengers: Age of Ultron" on May 1, 2015; and "Ant-Man" on July 17, 2015.