‘Black Widow’ Will Reportedly Be Marvel Studios’ First R-Rated Film

There have been lots of questions about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe after the events of Avengers: Endgame, but it seems like Black Widow will finally get her time in the spotlight.

Now that director Cate Shortland and screenwriter Jac Schaeffer are settling in on the film for Scarlett Johansson, Black Widow is finally starting to come together. And it sounds like it will be a big change for Marvel Studios.

The superhero powerhouse has produced more than 20 PG-13 films over the last decade, but after the success of films like Logan and Deadpool and Disney’s upcoming purchase of 20th Century Fox, it makes sense that the superhero giant would branch out into a more adult-friendly label.

According to the Hollywood gossip site Crazy Days & Nights, Marvel Studios is moving forward with plans to make Black Widow their first R-rated movies, though the blog’s explanation for the decision is more depressing than it seems at face value.

According to the gossip rag, “if the experiment goes horribly wrong they have a woman to blame for it which is what this studio wanted.” And while this might seem a bit unbelievable, they also nailed the Chris McQuarrie and Tom Cruise rumors pertaining to Green Lantern Corps, especially with Cruise requesting script changes regarding Hal Jordan’s death.

So while this might not be correct, they do have a track record.

Black Widow is a great character to test an R-rated expansion, whether it’s through a new production label along the lines of “Marvel MAX” or if they decide to just keep with the Marvel Studios name. Given the subject matter the character deals with, which includes high-stakes espionage and international assassinations, Johansson’s Widow is the perfect testing ground before they dive headfirst into another Deadpool sequel.

At this point, nothing seems set in stone as the movie has yet to be officially announced yet. But given that the contracts for Shortland and Schaeffer are already public knowledge, we wouldn’t be surprised if Marvel Studios decides to experiment with a movie a little less kid-friendly before taking on the Merc’ With the Mouth.

Black Widow does not yet have a release date, but is rumored to hit theaters in 2020.