7 Years Later, Avengers: Endgame’s Worst Crime Is About To Get Worse

Avengers: Endgame may be in the past, but its worst crime continues to haunt the MCU, as it’s about to get worse. It’s no secret that the Multiverse Saga has been more tumultuous than its predecessors, but Marvel Studios has seemingly found a way to ensure a proper ending for this era with Avengers: Doomsday. Some of Avengers: Endgame‘s biggest creative talents in front and behind the camera are involved in the upcoming culminating film, evoking nostalgia for those who were deep in the franchise during the Infinity Saga. That said, as beloved as Avengers: Endgame was, it still had its flaws. While most of them were easy to forgive, considering what the 2019 film achieved, there was one criticism that continues to be a sore spot for many.

Marking the end of the path for certain original Avengers, Avengers: Endgame saw Iron Man’s heroic sacrifice to defeat Thanos, and Steve Rogers’ retirement — both developments were mostly received positively. That said, the film also wrapped up Scarlett Johansson’s time as Black Widow, but unlike her fellow inaugural heroes, her send-off was controversial. For context, she sacrificed herself in Vormir for the Soul Stone, besting Hawkeye. There was an argument that Clint Barton’s checkered past as Ronin set the moment up as the perfect redemption act, but Avengers: Endgame took a different route, killing the only female original Avenger, who was already so underutilized during her time in the franchise.

Seven years later, the MCU is about to culminate again, and somehow, Avengers: Doomsday is able to bring back both Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans, but not Johansson. Granted that Downey Jr. is playing Doctor Doom and not Tony Stark, and Evans’ open-ended send-off allows his reprisal of Steve, it’s still difficult not to notice the absence of Natasha Romanoff, especially with Thor also confirmed, and the expectation that Hulk and Hawkeye will also be there. If bringing her back is really far too difficult, there’s the argument that Marvel Studios could have found a way to get Johansson involved, for old time’s sake.

Will The MCU Ever See The Return Of Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow?

Currently, no word yet if Johansson still has any kind of ties to Marvel Studios. After Avengers: Endgame, she reprised her role in the solo Black Widow film, which was a prequel. Back in 2021, Kevin Feige revealed that the actor was developing a top-secret project in the franchise, but no other substantial development has been shared about the matter. It’s also worth noting that Johansson had a very public falling out with Disney over the release strategy forBlack Widow, which had already been settled.

For what it’s worth, it does seem like Johansson continues to have a good relationship with the people she worked with before in the MCU, including Feige. However, bringing her back, whether it’s as Natasha or an entirely new character, will be dependent on her interest. In any case, she’s also busy now with Matt Reeves’ The Batman Part II.

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