The last few projects of the MCU have set up a lot of things for the franchise. The new one to join this list is Black Widow. The film introduced certain characters that we might get to see again in the MCU’s future. It takes place after the events of Captain America: Civil War. But the thematic connection to the current phase has set up a lot of things that MCU fans can expect. The main setup comes with the revelation of Natasha Romanoff’s family that includes Yelena Belova, Melina Vostokoff, and Red Guardian. It has also set the events of the upcoming series Hawkeye. Now let’s look at every way Black Widow has set up the future events of the MCU.
1. Yelena’s Time As An Assassin
Yelena Belova made her debut in this movie. It is a character that is currently trending and has been a topic of discussion among MCU fans. She was shown to be an assassin in the post-credits scene. So her story is not properly explored. We could get to see this in detail in the upcoming series Hawkeye. This is also enough material for a Black Widow sequel. Future movies set around Yelena will likely be set to detail her turn from a redeemed Black Widow into an assassin for hire.
2. Yelena as Nat’s Successor
Yelena is the perfect successor to Natasha Romanoff and can take the mantle of Black Widow. Her debut had links with the Red Room and her association with Natasha and guaranteed confrontation with Clint Barton are everything for MCU to place Yelena as one of the leading superheroes.
3. Hawkeye’s Meeting with Yelena
This can be the best way to set up the upcoming series Hawkeye. It was already confirmed that Yelena will appear in an upcoming Disney+ series. So certainly there will be a confrontation with Hawkeye where she would try to kill him. It has been confirmed that there would be an arc of vengeance for Yelena to follow shortly since Valentina convinced her that Natasha died because of Clint. Considering the setups, this one could be paid off the earliest since Hawkeye is rumored to premiere this year.
4. Rick Mason’s role as a Benefactor
In his first appearance, Rick Mason was worthy to become one of MCU Phase Four’s best characters. He was revealed to be a previous member of S.H.I.E.L.D. and remained loyal to Natasha and had a lot of resources. Since Natasha is dead, Rick’s role could expand in the upcoming movies as a possible benefactor for other characters. He could become “The Agent” from the comics, who is a freelance mercenary.
5. Hawkeye’s account of the Budapest incident
Black Widow revealed that the Budapest operation was about Hawkeye’s mission to kill Natasha and Dreykov, but he recruited her instead. But Natasha did not go into full detail about Hawkeye’s role during the mission and left out subtle hints about his involvement. Yelena’s confrontation with Clint can set up for the latter to give his account of what happened in Budapest. Also, it was never confirmed how he felt while using Dreykov’s daughter as bait, so it stands to reason that Yelena confronts her with this and for Clint to reveals specifics about the Budapest Operation.
6. The freedom of the Black Widows
Black Widow had to wait for many years to answer us about the Red Room. The ending revealed that Natasha freed everyone who was under Dreykov’s thrall. This means that these assassins might appear again in a future MCU project. The freed Black Widows have a chance to follow suit and be a part of Yelena’s future in the series. Even Yelena has to redeem herself after she took down quite a few Black Widows herself.
7. The impact of The Snap
Since the likes of Melina and Red Guardian have been introduced, it can be said that they would appear in the future. This can happen in a Black Widow sequel. Also, the film doesn’t confirm if Natasha’s family perished in the Snap and leaves it for the next film to reveal. It is a vital piece of information, or else it doesn’t make sense about Natasha’s whereabouts in the five-year gap. A future story in the MCU can confirm the whereabouts of Melina and Red Guardian and reveal what happened to them and Yelena during the Snap.
8. Valentina’s Going After Superheroes
Valentina made her debut in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Her motives were never revealed and it was implied that she had an interest in John Walker in the beginning. But Black Widow confirms that Valentina is targeting superheroes while she recruits Yelena. MCU’s next phase might see Valentina appear several times to manipulate superhero figures to her cause. Black Widow may have hinted that she might go after the existing superheroes by using recruits like the US Agent and Yelena Belova.
9. Thaddeus Ross’s hate the Avengers
Ross chasing Natasha may not have made any sense in Black Widow. But it was a way to establish that he does not intend to let the Avengers slide. This links to his cameo in Avengers: Endgame where he approached Maria Hill at Tony Stark’s funeral but confirmed that fans can expect him to cause trouble in the future. Black Widow is a Phase Four film and Ross hoping to nail down the Avengers might be followed with his later canonical appearance. The Sokovia Accords are technically still in place as shown in WandaVision and this means that Ross might appear in other movies with the same agenda.
So, this is how Black Widow has set up the future events of the MCU.
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