Will Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova Actually Become The New Black Widow? Here's What Kevin Feige Says

Yelena crying in Black Widow

Spoilers ahead for Black Widow.

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Following a number of frustrating delays, Black Widow finally arrived in theaters and streaming straight to homes. In addition to providing closure for Scarlett Johansson’s title character, we were also introduced to a number of new characters, including Florence Pugh’s Yelena. She quickly became a fan favorite, with moviegoers wondering if she’d become the next Black Widow. Luckily Kevin Feige himself recently responded to those questions.

As we saw throughout Scarlett Johansson’s long-awaited solo movie, Natasha was one of an army of Widows around the world. And since Nat perished sacrificing herself in Avengers: Endgame, some Marvel fans are hoping that Florence Pugh’s Yelena will take on the mantle and possibly become an Avenger herself. Kevin Feige was recently asked about this while participating in a Black Widow watch party, saying:

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Well, there you have it. It looks like while Yelena’s story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has just begun, she seemingly won’t be following in her sister’s footsteps. And given the credits scene from Black Widow, there are sure to be countless theories about what comes next for the assassin.

The above tweet comes to us from the official Marvel Studios Twitter page, which Kevin Feige took over to do his own live tweet session for Black Widow. While sharing behind the scenes information about the movie’s production, Feige also fielded a few questions from fans.

Marvel fans can watch Black Widow on Disney+ for an additional charge. You can use this link to sign up for the streaming service.

When we last saw Florence Pugh’s Yelena she was seemingly living an independent life, visiting Natasha’s grave. While grieving her sister, it becomes clear that she’s working for Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, and is seemingly taking aim at none other than Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye. With the Hawkeye series coming to Disney+ shortly, it seems possible that Pugh might return to the MCU in that mysterious series. Then again, Kevin Feige might also be taking his time and saving that crossover for a future date.

Marvel fans will just have to wait and see where Florence Pugh returns to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and if Yelena becomes a villain or hero. Considering how strongly moviegoers have responded to the character, it seems like she could have legs in the greater MCU. Yelena is a lesser known character from the comics, which might give the studio freedom to take bold narrative choices with the new character. Only time will tell.

Black Widow is in theaters now. Be sure to check out the 2021 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.