A couple of days ago, Marvel Studios shared a behind-the-scenes photo taken from the all-female team-up sequence in Avengers: Endgame. The pic boasted some serious star power, including nine of the MCU’s most prominent actresses. Some fans, however, have taken issue with a couple of notable absences.
For one thing, despite Valkyrie being present for the final battle, it looks like Tessa Thompson wasn’t on set when the picture was taken. What’s more, many are arguing that this all-female line-up feels incomplete without Scarlett Johansson. Of course, from a logistical perspective, it makes perfect sense that the Black Widow actress isn’t in the photo. After all, Natasha Romanoff was killed off before the start of Endgame’s final battle. Nonetheless, if you ask some Twitter users, it’s still a shame to see the founding Avenger excluded from the image:
— raphaᵇʷ 🌙 (@scrlettjohanssn) May 17, 2019
#Okoye #ScarletWitch #PepperPotts #CaptainMarvel #BlackWidow #TheWasp #TheValkyrie #Shuri #mantis #Gamora #Nebula
A-Force pic.twitter.com/6jDfUYKaIy
— rebelder❗️ (@poliannabc) May 17, 2019
No Black Widow, no Valkyrie. Well, just tryna be positive about Valkyrie; she is making sure her pegasus ride doesn't go anywhere.
A-Force, Assemble! https://t.co/XcnqRcg4qi— َ (@lesyeuxdezeni) May 18, 2019
I fixed it #AvengersEndgame pic.twitter.com/Nd2Vhb859J
— xiomi ⴵ (@HILLROMANOFF) May 17, 2019
https://twitter.com/queenTSwizzllle/status/1129691341355511808
There’s been talk for a while now about the possibility of an all-female Avengers movie, albeit with little evidence to suggest that such a project is currently in the works. If, however, an A-Force film ever happens, we wouldn’t bet on Johansson making an appearance, given her character’s sad fate in Avengers: Endgame.
Speaking of which, Black Widow’s mid-movie demise has been the subject of some controversy in recent weeks. In particular, many viewers have decried the moment as an example of the “fridging” trope, where a female character is killed off to motivate the men.
Co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo have responded to the criticism by arguing that Nat’s sacrifice was a fitting and noble completion of her arc. All the same, if you feel the heroine got short-changed in her latest outing, then you may want to check out the Black Widow solo movie that’s expected to hit theaters next year.
