During those awkward few months when nobody knew what was happening with Black Widow, there was plenty of online chatter that Kevin Feige was trying his best to prevent his corporate overlords from debuting the Marvel Cinematic Universe prequel on Disney Plus Premier Access.
At the time these rumors were making the rounds, the theatrical industry was still caught in the devastating throes of the Coronavirus pandemic with no end in sight, and it would have been foolish for any big budget blockbuster to even contemplate a big screen bow. Thankfully, things have significantly leveled off since then, but it’s a long way from being business as usual.
After an extended period of uncertainty, it was finally confirmed that Black Widow would be available on Premier Access the same day it hit theaters to give audiences the choice of whether they wanted to risk a trip to the multiplex. Looking at the success of Fast & Furious 9, they’re definitely game, but opening weekend totals might take a serious hit if people can watch it from the comfort of their own homes instead.
Insider Daniel Richtman is now claiming that Marvel’s Chief Creative Officer is furious with Disney, because they didn’t tell him about the plan to give Black Widow a hybrid release. While there’s definitely precedent for this sort of thing looking at the backlash that greeted Warner Bros. when they made the HBO Max call, the Mouse House did notify the teams behind Soul, Raya and the Last Dragon, Cruella and Luca months ahead of time that they were no longer theatrical exclusives, so it would be a major shock if they didn’t bother including one of the most important and powerful people working under their umbrella in the plans for Natasha Romanoff’s swansong.
