Marvel is aiming high with its recently-confirmed Black Widow movie.
How high, you ask? Think Wonder Woman-levels of success, as a new report from the Daily Mail (!) claims Marvel and Disney have agreed to a $25 million deal that will see Scarlett Johansson take charge as Natalia Alianovna Romanoff.
The Daily Mail’s reputation is spotty at best, so we wouldn’t take these allegations as gospel. Still, it’s not too difficult to imagine a scenario in which the Powers That Be tabled a huge, record-setting offer to secure ScarJo, as she’s currently one of the biggest stars on the planet. In fact, should this report hold true, she’ll become Hollywood’s highest-paid actress thanks to Black Widow.
Citing a “well-placed source in the industry,” the Daily Mail alleges that:
Scarlett will get a huge payday for the Black Widow film, which Disney believes could eclipse Wonder Woman in terms of a female-led superhero film’s revenue. She has been a lucky charm for the studio in all their films, and brings her A-game during each performance.
Should the end product crack $900 million worldwide, ScarJo will also receive a huge bonus, bringing her potential earnings up to $31 million – Robert Downey Jr., by comparison, is reportedly Marvel’s highest-paid star, and typically notches around $50 million per film.
It’s not outside the realm of possibility, of course, but $900 million may be too high for even Black Widow. After a scintillating run at the box office, Wonder Woman topped out at $821 million, and it’s fair to say that Diana Prince, what with her 75-year legacy, holds more cachet among comic book fans than Natasha Romanoff.
The Daily Mail continued:
Scarlett is adored by Disney’s top brass and is a real team player. This stand-alone movie is out there for them, but they feel it can make history. The wages are high, but nothing she doesn’t deserve given her track record as this character. Her agents have pushed through the revenue bonus payment. If it makes over $900 million at the box office then she will get another $6 million.
Though it’s just now coming to light, Marvel’s Black Widow spinoff is already making serious headway, with reports that it could be in theaters by summer 2020. Chalk that up as an early estimate, though, with the only real detail being that Jac Schaeffer is attached to write the script.
