A solo Black Widow film starring Scarlett Johansson appears to be moving forward after being stalled for several years.
Johansson has reportedly been pitching the film for years, and Marvel Studios has finally hired scriptwriter Jac Shaeffer to write the project’s script, Variety reported. Schaeffer wrote the script for upcoming films “The Shower” and “Nasty Women,” both starring Anne Hathaway.
According to sources, the Black Widow film has not yet been greenlit and is in very early development with no guarantee it will be made, Variety said.
Fans have long wanted a Black Widow standalone movie, but the project has been put off by Marvel. It's likely the success of DC Comics' Wonder Woman film and the trend toward women's empowerment over recent months have played into Marvel's decision to rethink the decision.
A trailer released this week for “Red Sparrow,” starring Jennifer Lawrence as a Russian orphan brainwashed and trained to be a spy, has been referred to as an unofficial Black Widow movie. The origin story is very similar to Black Widow's.
Marvel chief Kevin Feige told Deadline in 2016 that Black Widow was in contention for a movie project after the two-part "Infinity War" movies.
Johansson has played Black Widow in six movies for Marvel, beginning with "Iron Man 2" and including this summer's upcoming "Avengers: Infinity War."
Twitter debated the necessity of a solo film but many were pleased to see it get closer to fruition.