'I am certainly less afraid of things now than I was 10 years ago': Scarlett Johansson on how Black Widow role changed her

Since her introduction into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) in 2010, Black Widow has gone on to save the world numerous times from threats that only increase in intensity.

After 11 years of inhabiting the role of a super spy that takes on galactic dangers, has the superheroine's courage influenced actress Scarlett Johansson in real life?

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That was a question posed during the recent global press conference for the film, and the 36-year-old admitted that the onscreen alter ego has inspired her to be "more comfortable taking risks" and "jumping into the unknown".

She said: "It's been such a long chunk of my adulthood playing this character that I certainly am less afraid of things now than I was 10 years ago, which is good. I feel like that's a positive progression in life.

"I mean, not physically. Physically, I'm more terrified of stuff than I used to be. But I am definitely more comfortable taking risks. And I'm more comfortable with jumping into things that I don't know... and seeing how stuff plays out."

In the upcoming Black Widow, Scarlett portrays the titular assassin-turned-hero in a standalone story that sees her tackle the ghosts of her past. This story takes place between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War and provides a nice conclusion to her journey.

As we all know, Black Widow meets her demise in Avengers: Endgame when she sacrifices herself to save the galaxy.

As for the motivation to explore a solo story about the character, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige said: "We very specifically knew there was a large period of her life that we didn't know about. Not just her childhood, but this period of time between Civil War and Infinity War.

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"And that period, we felt, was right to creatively focus on, to be able to discover more about her past, more about her present and... give a hint at the legacy in the future — all at the same time."

Moving away from a hyper-sexualised character

In focusing on this singular period of her life, we get to see Scarlett bring the heroine to life in a very different way.

And it's a far cry from the hyper-sexualised portrayal of the character in Iron Man 2 — something that Scarlett criticised in a prior interview with Collider.

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"Natasha at the beginning of this film is really alone for the first time. She's always been a part of something by circumstance... starting out with... being a victim of the Red Room. And then, obviously, joining with SHIELD and subsequently, Avengers," Scarlett shared during the press conference.

"She has always been a part of something that was, you know, part of a greater whole. And then, suddenly she finds herself sort of floating in this weird in-between space, and she's off her game."

Joining Natasha on her journey to — as she would say — clear the red in her ledger are Florence Pugh as Yelena (another spy in the Black Widow programme), David Harbour as Alexei/The Red Guardian (Russian counterpart of Captain America), and Rachel Weisz as Melina (spy-turned-scientist working for the Black Widow programme).

Describing Yelena as the "wonderfully annoying younger sister that says all the right things at all the wrong times", Florence, 35, said a fun part of this role was figuring who this character was when she escaped from the Red Room.

"She really comes out of the Red Room and can start life, and she can buy her own clothes, and she can buy a vest that has lots of pockets, and she is really excited by it."

Red Guardian versus Captain America?

Another standout character was Alexei, an obsolete Super Soldier who still talks about the glory days and provides much comic relief in the show. In one scene, Alexei claimed to have crossed paths with Captain America and it's something David hopes will be shown in the MCU.

The 46-year-old said: "What's funny about Alexei is like, you have this big 25-year gap that we don't know about... So there is this period of time, where he has all these stories about his life and about what went on.

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"And it's questionable whether or not they're real. I like... how hard he had to construct these realities for himself, and how durable those realities are...

"I do think that the classic Cold War thing is a really fun and funny dynamic between these two guys (Red Guardian and Captain America). And the fact that they basically came up as nuclear warheads like in an arms race together. I think it's just a really great concept that could be explored further."

Well, David (and perhaps the legion of MCU fans) might just get their wish granted because Kevin revealed other MCU characters might get a similar treatment.

In response to a press question about whether Natasha is the only character who gets a prequel, Kevin replied: "Certainly this film, in this story, is a particular case for Natasha. But the notion of exploring the past, present, and future of the MCU is certainly in the cards for all of our characters."

Black Widow will open in cinemas on July 8 and will be available on Disney+ with Premier Access on July 9.

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bryanlim@asiaone.com