Out of the three potential Black Widow replacements that the MCU has set up so far, two of them are seemingly already going to waste. Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff debuted in Phase 1 and was a crucial part of the original core Avengers. As Natasha’s backstory got further fleshed out, the name Black Widow started to mean more than just her hero idenтιтy. It represented the cruel Red Room, where young girls were trained to become elite spies and ᴀssᴀssins known as Black Widows.

Black Widow has become a general term in the MCU, but that doesn’t change the fact that Natasha Romanoff is still the beloved original hero. With most of the Phase 1 heroes who have concluded their franchise storyline, the studio has gradually been setting up legacy characters as replacements of sorts. Fans have already seen this with the more obvious characters like Sam Wilson’s Captain America and Jennifer Walters’ She-Hulk, but Black Widow is actually one of the MCU characters with the most potential replacements. However, only one of them has truly come to fruition.

The MCU Has Set Up 3 Black Widow Replacements Since Natasha’s Death

Since Natasha Romanoff died in Avengers: Endgame, the MCU has already set up three potential Black Widow replacements. 2021’s Black Widow introduced two characters with close ties to Natasha in Yelena Belova and Antonia Dreykov, both of whom were brought up in the Black Widow program. Serving as Natasha’s fake sister during an undercover mission when they were kids, Yelena seems like an obvious successor to Natasha because of her familial relationship with the MCU’s original Black Widow. She would also be the most willing to continue Natasha’s legacy, considering the lengths she’s already gone to in order to avenge her.

On the other hand, Antonia was originally a victim of one of Natasha’s missions. She was thought to have been killed during SHIELD’s Budapest mission to take down General Dreykov and the Red Room but ultimately survived. Her father then put a mind and body control chip inside her and trained her in the Black Widow program, where she became known as Taskmaster. A third Black Widow was recently introduced in Captain America: Brave New World with Ruth Bat-Seraph. The security advisor to President Ross was revealed to be a former Black Widow, which explained her excellent combat skills.

Marvel Looks Set To Waste 2 Of These 3 Black Widow Replacements

Though Black Widow already has three potential replacements, two of them are already going to waste. Yelena is the only one who has a confirmed MCU future so far. She will be a main character in the upcoming Thunderbolts* movie, and Florence Pugh was recently one of the actors confirmed to be returning for Avengers: Doomsday. This seemingly confirms that Yelena will still be alive by the end of the film. While Taskmaster will also be appearing in Thunderbolts*, her MCU future looks a lot more bleak.

It’s theorized that Taskmaster will die in Thunderbolts* as she’s been in very little promotional footage. She is also the only member of the Thunderbolts not confirmed for Doomsday. As for Ruth, she ultimately played a minor role in Brave New World. The film ends without much word about her and there doesn’t seem to be any intention of following up on her story at this point. Yelena is the only Black Widow to have any clear future in the MCU, and it feels likely that the other two potential replacements will fall by the wayside.

Marvel Cinematic Universe

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Created by

Kevin Feige

Cast

Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Edward Norton, Paul Rudd, Tom Holland, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Brie Larson, Chadwick Boseman, Sebastian Stan, Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Pom Klementieff, Josh Brolin, Karen Gillan, Clark Gregg, Paul Bettany, Don Cheadle, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Simu Liu, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Angelina Jolie, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, Barry Keoghan, Gemma Chan, Ma Dong-seok, Brian Tyree Henry, Kumail Nanjiani, Lauren Ridloff, Lia McHugh, Jonathan Majors

First Film

Iron Man

Upcoming Films

ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool & Wolverine, Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, Blade (2025), The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Avengers: Doomsday (2026), Avengers: Secret Wars

First TV Show

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Upcoming TV Shows

Agatha: Coven of Chaos, Ironheart, Daredevil: Born Again, Wakanda, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Marvel Zombies, Wonder Man, Vision Quest

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Upcoming MCU Movies

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  Thunderbolts*

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  May 2, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  The Fantastic Four: First Steps

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  July 25, 2025
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Doomsday (2026)

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

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  MCU Spider-Man 4

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  July 24, 2026
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Avengers: Secret Wars

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  May 7, 2027
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

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