clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Marvel delays Black Widow due to coronavirus

Marvel’s solo female superhero movie has been delayed indefinitely because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Black Widow
Marvel Entertainment/Walt Disney Studios
Alex Abad-Santos is a senior correspondent who explains what society obsesses over, from Marvel and movies to fitness and skin care. He came to Vox in 2014. Prior to that, he worked at the Atlantic.

Black Widow will have to wait a little longer for her own movie. The film, originally due to hit theaters May 1, has been delayed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Black Widow is set to be a prequel of sorts, telling the story of what happened to Natasha Romanoff between the end of Captain America: Civil War and the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War. Whatever that story is, it involves her menacing, makeshift, Russian, assassin family (played by Rachel Weisz, Florence Pugh, and David Harbour).

Prior to 2019’s Captain Marvel, Marvel Studios had never given a female superhero her own solo movie, despite giving many of its male heroes their own starring roles trilogies. Because of that imbalance, fans, especially female fans, have been looking to Black Widow — the character and film — as an opportunity for representation.

Marvel’s delay follows parent company Disney’s announcement that Mulan, its big blockbuster remake due March 27, was postponed indefinitely, along with New Mutants, an X-Men horror riff produced by Fox, and Antlers, a creepy sci-fi flick.

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for Vox Recommends

Get curated picks of the best Vox journalism to read, watch, and listen to every week, from our editors.