Black Widow has the power of giving Natasha Romanoff a better ending than Avengers: Endgame did. The final Avengers film saw the surviving heroes bringing back those who vanished after Thanos’ snap in Avengers: Infinity War, but it also saw two beloved characters die: Iron Man and Black Widow. Tony Stark got a heroic ending that brought a satisfying (although sad) closure to his arc, but the same can’t be said about Black Widow. Natasha’s final mission was to go back in time with Hawkeye to Vormir in order to get the soul stone – but as Thanos and viewers learned in Infinity War, the stone could only be acquired by sacrificing someone they love, and Natasha sacrificed herself.

Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow was introduced in Iron Man 2 and went on to appear in six more films: The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. Although she was part of the original Avengers of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, she was constantly neglected by the writers, who either gave her troubling arcs that didn’t fit her (as happened in Age of Ultron) or they simply didn’t bother to develop her story. As result, her death in Avengers: Endgame has been one of the most criticized moments of the film.

Avengers: Endgame was Natasha’s final adventure, but fans will get to see her one more time in her solo film Black Widow, which will serve as a prequel as it’s set after the events of Captain America: Civil War – and hopefully, this film will give her a better ending.

The Problems With Black Widow’s Death In Avengers: Endgame

In all her appearances in the MCU, viewers didn’t really get to know who Natasha Romanoff was. Age of Ultron offered a bit of backstory through the nightmare induced by Scarlet Witch, in which Natasha was seen during her assassin training at the Red Room, in Russia. It was also revealed through this vision that all those in training were forced to be sterilized, something that Natasha herself later said made her feel like a monster (and so Joss Whedon had the terrible idea of pairing her with fellow “monster”, Hulk). Her arc in Age of Ultron was really bad, so much that it was forgotten in subsequent films, but her story wasn’t explored any further. That way, Natasha’s death was perceived by many as the female character that had to sacrifice herself for the sake of a male character (even if it was to help bring back half the universe, the act was more focused on her relationship with Hawkeye), which obviously didn’t appeal to a lot of viewers. Add that Hawkeye survives explicitly because of his family and Black Widow’s sacrifice only makes her already problematic arc (or lack of it) even worse, and completely ignores that in the first part of the film she opened up to Steve Rogers and called the team her family.

It’s also unclear how her death fulfills the rules to get the Soul Stone. In Infinity War, it was clear that a person has to choose to give up the one they love, but in Natasha and Clint’s case they chose themselves, and Natasha ended up killing herself. It only makes the rules within the MCU even weirder and more flexible, which doesn’t help at all. Her death was also left aside for the rest of the film, except when the Hulk said he tried to bring her back when he undid the snap. Unlike Stark, she didn’t get a funeral or any type of ceremony, with Joe Russo justifying this by saying that she’s getting her own film and Tony isn’t. Truth is that, while Tony Stark was a bigger figure than Natasha Romanoff, she never stopped working to help others, not even in the five years between killing Thanos and undoing the snap, while Tony did get a break from superhero life even before that. Taking that into account along with the underdevelopment of the character, both her death and lack of funeral felt like a disservice to her, and her sacrifice ended up being nothing more than a plot device.

Black Widow Can Better Setup Natasha’s Endgame Death

Black Widow is the MCU’s final chance to show viewers who Natasha Romanoff really was, where she came from, and what her motivations were. The film will follow Natasha as she’s on the run from authorities following the events of Civil War and reunites with people from her past, specifically Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Alexei Shostakov aka Red Guardian (David Harbour), and Melina (Rachel Weisz). The first trailer for Black Widow didn’t give away any plot details, but it’s heavily implied that the film will explore the Red Room (both as part of her past and the operations of this place at that moment), which will help the audience know and understand her character better.

Black Widow can give fans a glimpse at her transformation from Russian assassin to hero, how and why her motivations changed, and the basis of what drove her to sacrifice herself to save humanity. Although none of the Avengers are set to appear, the film can also explore her ties to the team, especially Hawkeye, justifying in the process why her sacrifice counted as a “love” one per the Soul Stone rules – and fans have been waiting for an explanation on the famous Budapest mission, so it’s now or never. As mentioned above, Black Widow had zero consistency throughout her appearances in the MCU, and her solo film is the last opportunity to give her a full hero arc that can help create some cohesion with her past appearances (and future, as Infinity War and Endgame are set after it), as well as justify her death.

Black Widow’s Solo Movie Can Give Her A Better MCU Ending

Avengers: Endgame was Natasha’s final mission, but Black Widow is her final film, no matter if it’s a prequel. As such, it has the power of giving Natasha a better ending that can impact her character’s death and change the general opinion and perception of it. Of course, how this will happen is a mystery, but a couple of theories and ideas have come out from what is known so far about the film’s plot. Black Widow will presumably end with Natasha reuniting with Steve Rogers, as by the time Avengers: Infinity War began they were already working together again. Why she made the choice to go back, keep fighting, and be a hero can depend on many things, but her Russian family might have something to do with it. If that’s the case, it would bring so much more to her arc than any of her previous appearances did, and would give her Endgame death an emotional background.

Black Widow’s death won’t change, but the events that happened before it and that drove Natasha to do what she did can turn it around and give it actual meaning. In addition to that, Black Widow can (and hopefully will) do justice to the character by properly exploring and developing her story – something that should have happened a long time ago, but better late than never.

Next: How One Marvel Comic Remade Black Widow For The MCU

  • Black Widow Release Date: 2021-07-09 The Eternals Release Date: 2021-11-05 Shang Chi Release Date: 2021-09-03 Doctor Strange 2 Release Date: 2022-05-06 Thor: Love and Thunder Release Date: 2022-07-08 Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Release Date: 2022-11-11