When a family reunion turns into an epic fight that has Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) and Yelena (Florence Pugh) throwing each other against the wall, it’s clear there’s no love lost between these sisters.
Set after the events of Captain America: Civil War and before Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel Studios’ Black Widow dives deep into Natasha’s past as a spy and the events and relationships that shaped her before becoming an Avenger.
One of these relationships is with Yelena, who was separated from Natasha as a child and still holds resentment towards her. When the characters meet again at a safe house in Budapest, it doesn’t take long for the gloves to come off.
Not only does the battle allow the sisters to blow off some steam and reconnect, it also served as a bonding moment for Johansson and Pugh who were filming their first scene together early on in the production.
“So literally on my first day I was, like, throwing Scarlett up against a wall, and she was smashing my face in the sink,” says Pugh during a recent global press conference.
“And I just remember there was no greater way than to just break the ice than really wrestling Scarlett Johansson to the floor,” she adds with a laugh. “Like, trying to choke each other. It was great that it was done. We got to know each other, and we were friends.”
Johansson agrees and praises Pugh for nailing the choreography in such an emotional fight.
“It was such a unique way to bond with another actor. But it also felt like a very safe way to do it somehow. There was like no trepidation; we were just like in the muck,” she says.
The scheduling of that scene might have been perfect timing, but the weather wasn’t as accommodating. Director Cate Shortland recalls filming the fight scene during a heat wave where they had to stop shooting because the set was as hot as a “microwave oven.”
“It was kinda great watching these two women fight and making it look effortless. And then they'd stop, and we'd kinda hose them down,” says Shortland with a laugh. “And then put them back in.”
Exploring Natasha’s vulnerable side
Yelena (Florence Pugh) and Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) in Marvel Studios' Black Widow. Photo by Jay Maidment. ©Marvel Studios 2021Getting a glimpse into Natasha’s rocky relationship with her sister allows fans to see a vulnerable side to Black Widow for the first time.
“She's blindsided by this person who comes from her past who is just on fire and is a liability and (has) this crazy energy and is dangerous … (Yelena) isn't needy, but needs her, and (Natasha’s) so thrown off her game in this. It's great to see her like that. We never get to see her like that,” says Johansson.
Shortland says it was important to find a balance between making an emotional drama and a fun, action-packed spy thriller.
“We wanted it to be both, but we wanted it to be raw and that those things would seamlessly mesh together … it was always like putting her at the centre of it but making sure that we didn't let the trauma of her past drag it down, that rather that we came up to answer it. And we often did that with humour.”
A fractured family reunion
(L-R): Melina (Rachel Weisz), Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) and Yelena (Florence Pugh) in Marvel Studios' Black Widow. Photo by Jay Maidment. ©Marvel Studios 2021
As well as Yelena, we also meet two other people from Natasha’s past – former spy Melina (Rachel Weisz) and Alexei/Red Guardian (David Harbour).
“It was wonderful to tell a story with three complicated, strong women. It was really unlike anything I've ever done. It felt incredibly intimate and (incredibly) emotional,” says Weisz.
The fractured family unit also provides some much-needed comic relief.
“I had to just like, steel myself most days to stop laughing at David Harbour,” says Weisz, singing her co-star’s comedic praises.
(L-R): Yelena (Florence Pugh), Alexei (David Harbour) and Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) in Marvel Studios' Black Widow. Photo by Jay Maidment. ©Marvel Studios 2021
Harbour says his character uses humour as a way to deflect the grief and remorse he feels about the choices he made, making for another unconventional family reunion.
“He has to be some bombastic (person) because he can't stop and feel these things, the failures that he made,” says Harbour.
“So, he has to build around him a world of, like, a confabulatory, psychotic reality where he (is the) hero. And that's inherently silly. I mean that's inherently funny. And also, the family dynamics themselves are just so fun.”
Black Widow opens in Cineplex Theatres July 9th.