Fans were shocked when Black Widow sacrificed herself so Hawkeye could claim the Soul Stone on Vormir halfway through Avengers: Endgame. As heartbreaking as it was, though, we kind of assumed that she would be resurrected with all the other heroes that died in Avengers: Infinity War at the end of the movie. Tragically, however, this was not to be, as it was explained that though Hulk attempted to bring her back when he reversed Thanos’ snap, it didn’t work for some reason.
If you’re wondering why that was, the Russos have now cleared up the mystery. While speaking on the commentary track for the film (available on Digital HD now), Joe Russo said that the key to understanding this is in paying close attention to what Red Skull tells them.
“Red Skull very clearly says, ‘It is an everlasting exchange. And ‘Everlasting’ would imply that it can’t be undone.”
So, there you go. It seems a sacrificial death made to claim the Soul Stone cannot be undone, even by the combined power of all six Infinity Stones. This presumably also applies to Gamora, hence why she wasn’t brought back to life along with the rest at Endgame‘s conclusion. Though at least there’s the alternate 2014 timeline version of her running around the cosmos somewhere. Expect her to reappear in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, whenever that arrives.
As for Natasha Romanoff, we’re pretty sure she isn’t coming back in anything set chronologically after Endgame. However, Scarlett Johansson is currently filming her own Black Widow movie. This is due to slot in between Captain America: Civil War and Infinity War, as well as dipping into Nat’s dark past as a Russian assassin. Look out for that in theaters on May 1st.
Avengers: Endgame, meanwhile, is released on DVD and Blu-Ray from August 13th.