Marvel Studios and Scarlett Johansson are working together on a mystery project that is said to be totally unrelated to her Black Widow character.
According to Deadline, Marvel boss Kevin Feige teased the studio's "top secret" project while he was paying tribute to Johansson in recognition of her being awarded the American Cinematheque Award on Thursday night. He noted that the next collaboration between the studio and the actress "has nothing to do with" her MCU character Natasha Romanoff.
A reporter from The Hollywood Reporter, who was also in attendance at the awards show, shared videos of the night's proceedings on Twitter, including one of Feige's speech in which he mentioned Marvel's secret project with Johansson. You can give it a watch below:
Kevin Feige confirms from the stage another project with Scarlett. “We are already working with Scarlett on another non-Black Widow related top secret Marvel Studios project with her as a producer. Scarlett is one of the most talented, versatile and beloved actors of our time.” pic.twitter.com/5dKQeR0Lr5
— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) November 19, 2021
As to be expected, Feige kept almost all details about the project under wraps, other than to say that Johansson will be serving as a producer on the upcoming project in the wake of her role as executive producer on Black Widow, the first movie of Phase 4 of the MCU, released earlier this year. In his speech, Feige praised Johansson's "talent" and "vision."
"Scarlett has lent her talent and star power to the Marvel Cinematic Universe for over a decade. That she's chosen to play a key part in it for so many years, I am extremely grateful for," the MCU producer said at the annual awards show. "Working with [her] has truly been one of the most memorable and rewarding collaborations of my career."
The announcement of Marvel's team-up with Johansson is quite significant as it follows the lawsuit that the actress filed against Disney back in July over the alleged Black Widow contract breach due to the film releasing on Disney+ at the same time it was released in theaters. The Hollywood Reporter later confirmed that the two parties reached a settlement.
While Black Widow basically capped off Natasha's story by setting up her role in Infinity War, it was far more open-ended for the rest of her family. We saw Yelena, Alexei and Melina gathering up the surviving Widows and retreating to parts unknown before a post-credits scene saw Contessa approach Yelena with a new assignment to hunt down and kill Hawkeye.
The surprise scene directly set the stage for the upcoming Hawkeye series, which is scheduled to drop its first episode on Disney+ on November 24, just in time for Thanksgiving. New episodes will arrive every Wednesday thereafter. The series follows WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Loki in Marvel's live-action Disney+ TV show slate.
Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.