Marvel’s Phase 4 is inching closer and closer as we’re less than a year away from Avengers 4 hitting theaters. There have been plenty of plans afoot for Phase 4 including the long overdue Black Widow film. Scarlett Johansson’s iconic role as the Russian spy has been an integral character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe since its early days in Phase 1 but similar to Hawkeye, no solo Widow film saw the light for the MCU. Things are changing as Black Widow has now found a director to helm the project.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Australian director Cate Shortland has signed on to direct the Marvel project. This name isn’t relatively new if you’ve been following the story as Shortland was one of the front-runners for the role among 65 other filmmakers. Anna Asante and Maggie Betts known for their directorial efforts in Belle and Novitiate respectively were reported to also be shortlisted last month but Shortland was the still the one to bet on. It seems that that bet was the right one.
Shortland has a pretty good resume having recently directed acclaimed dramas such as Somersault and Lore along with the recent psychological thriller film, Berlin Syndrome starring Teresa Palmer. This would be Shortland’s first venture into blockbuster territory having directed mostly smaller films but with her ‘indie’ roots, she would be able offer up something unique to the MCU.
The Black Widow film doesn’t have a confirmed release date yet but chances reside around a 2020 release. The film will be the MCU’s second female-focused film after Captain Marvel (as far as we know) which is set to be released next year in March. Shortland, together with screenwriter Jac Schaeffer have a lot riding on their shoulders. The film also looks like it’ll be a prequel set before the first Avengers according to THR so there’s a chance that the film would be smaller in scale and would emphasize the spy stuff a little more but that’s just speculation. Well, let’s hope this is genuinely good.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
