Scarlett Johansson Thought First Iron Man Movie Was Groundbreaking

Iron Man’s death in Avengers: Endgame was one of those events that came to define the Summer among Marvel movie fans. But, one other Avenger bit the dust in the film, and even though she’s gone as well, she can’t say enough about Robert Downey Jr.‘s performance as Tony Stark. Scarlett Johansson sat down with Vanity Fair to talk about her career and Black Widow. However, it would only be a matter of time before the MCU’s most celebrated figure popped up. It turns out that Downey’s performance in Iron Man was a huge part of the actress wanting to join up. Even so, there were moments where it looked like Johansson wasn’t going to be able to fill the role of Black Widow. As luck would have it, everything worked out the way it was supposed to. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had so many different twists and turns over the years, but most of it can be traced back to Downey in that initial movie proving that these giant films could not only be made. That first step directly feeds into everything that comes afterward and Marvel fans are pretty thankful for that as it has provided some very entertaining trips to the theater.

“I just loved it,” she said about the first Iron Man film. “I’d never really seen anything like it before. It was not particularly that I was a fan of superhero stuff, or that genre, but it seemed groundbreaking. And I wanted to work with Marvel. It seemed like an exciting place to be.”

Black Widow is on the way now, and fans would like some closure with the character after that harrowing turn in Avengers: Endgame. Johansson has been saying that the film will provide a measure of finality for fans in multiple interviews and even told the magazine what she felt like the main takeaway from the film was.

“We just wrapped Black Widow like two weeks or something like that so it’s very fresh in my mind and I don’t have a total perspective on it yet,” she revealed. “It’s a film about self forgiveness and it’s a film about family. I think in life, we come of age many times in life, and we have these moments where you’re in a transitional phase and then you’re sort of beyond it. I think in the Black Widow film, I think the character when we find her, I think, is in a real moment of crisis. Throughout the film, by facing herself in a lot of ways and a lot of things that make her her, she actually comes through that crisis on the other side and is able to reset into that space where she’s a more rounded, self-possessed person.”

Lastly, she was very reflective on being a part of a project as big as Endgame. The overwhelming pride at the finished product is something that a lot of the stars involved have voiced since the film’s release.

“I’m really proud of Endgame. It was so ambitious,” Johansson said to VantiyFair. “I felt it really strongly delivered. I felt it was satisfying. Actually, I felt like Endgame elevated the genre in a lot of ways and it actually allowed all of us as characters to have great dramatic moments where you don’t really have that room in those genre movies because they’re so plot-driven. This one was actually quite character-driven. I felt very emotional when I watched it but also very proud of it.”