Capitain America: Civil War directors join long list of people calling for a Black Widow movie

Captain America: Civil War's directing duo, Joe and Anthony Russo, expressed interest in directing any future potential Black Widow film. A film who's lack of existence on this earth continues to baffle anyone with even a passing knowledge of who or what the Marvel Cinematic Universe is about. 

The pair enthused about the character while attending a Chinese junket for Civil War (via Comics Alliance), with Joe adding; “We find that the character is one of the richest, if not the richest, character in the Marvel universe. She’s a very complex character. She’s haunted by demons and her understanding of the world is fascinating. I think there is a lot that can be done with that character.”

Logically, it's maddening this hasn't happened yet. The only two Avengers without their own franchises are Black Widow and Hawkeye. And putting it bluntly: nobody cares about Hawkeye, everyone loves Black Widow. Natasha Romanoff is a butt-kicking hero with, as Joe points out, the most interesting backstory of the entire bunch. On top of that, Johansson is a mainstay on the list of highest-grossing actresses, ranking #2 last year with an estimated $35.5M; beloved by fans for her steely performance and general impenetrable coolness. 

And, yet, Marvel's slate is full all the way until 2020; with the focus slowly drifting away from The Avengers and towards new properties like The Inhumans. 2020 still have three untitled Marvel films, but it seems improbable any of these will put Black Widow front and centre after The Avengers narrative closes with Infinity War - Part 2. 

Indeed, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has already come under fire for this apparent lack of female-fronted movies. Back in 2014, he told Comic Book Resources; "I think it comes down to timing, which is what I’ve sort of always said, and it comes down to us being able to tell the right story. I very much believe in doing it. I very much believe that it’s unfair to say, 'People don’t want to see movies with female heroes,' then list five movies that were not very good, therefore, people didn’t go to the movies because they weren’t good movies, versus [because] they were female leads. And they don’t mention Hunger Games, Frozen, Divergent. You can go back to Kill Bill or Aliens. These are all female-led movies. It can certainly be done."

Captain Marvel's been greenlit since then, but we'll have to wait until 2019. The Wasp's entrance into the MCU was hinted at the end of this year's Ant-Man, with her taking a prominent role in its sequel Ant-Man and The Wasp in 2018. But does that magically make up for the fact The Wasp is one of the founding members of The Avengers yet was shuffled out of its cinematic adaptation?

The only positive is that Marvel's slate is unlikely to be entirely concrete, so there's still a chance enough demand from fans could get us a Black Widow film greenlit in time for release in the next few years.

For now, she'll be turning up in the Russos' upcoming Captain America: Civil War, out in UK theatres 29 April.