Scarlett Johansson has had quite a bit of time to think about a 鈥� 鈥� movie. After all, she鈥檚 played the character in seven movies spanning 10 years.

Yet unlike many of her fellow Avengers who got grand introductions in movies and sequels bearing their names on the marquee, she built the enigmatic Natasha Romanoff as a sideline scene stealer beginning with her introduction in 2010鈥檚 鈥淚ron Man 2鈥� through her exit in 鈥淎vengers: Endgame.鈥�

By the time her name was called for a coveted standalone, she knew that, above all, she wanted Black Widow鈥檚 film to be unexpected. And as the first lead actor to serve as a producer on a Marvel film, she actually had a say.

The character, introduced in the comics in 1964, is inextricably tied to a Soviet-era spy aesthetic fitting of James Bond. But that seemed like the easy route.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want it to be an espionage film,鈥� Johansson said. 鈥淚 think we avoided that.鈥�

Instead, 鈥淏lack Widow鈥� helps peel back the layers on a hard-to-grasp character, with a little bit of an origin story, a little bit of a coda and the introduction of people outside of the Avengers who mean something to her. Johansson also personally recruited Australian indie director Cate Shortland, another unexpected and inspired choice, to helm.

Marvel veteran Eric Pearson had the task of writing the script and took advantage of the fact that the character seemed to change and become more emotionally vulnerable between 鈥淐ivil War鈥� and 鈥淚nfinity War鈥�/鈥滶ndgame,鈥� which is when 鈥淏lack Widow鈥� is set.

鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at what happened there,鈥� Pearson said. 鈥淲hat happened when she went back and confronted her past that unlocked her heart and kind of opened her up to the world and eventually led her to make that all-time sacrifice at the end of 鈥楨ndgame.鈥欌��

Part of that involved introducing a sort-of sister character in Yelena Belova, played as an adult by Florence Pugh, who also had the traumatic experience of being trained in the 鈥淩ed Room鈥� as a child.

鈥淔lorence is so vibrant and interesting to watch that you think, 鈥極K鈥� there鈥檚 going to be life here,鈥欌�� Johansson said.

Despite not really knowing one another beforehand, they quickly connected on set, partly due to a natural chemistry between the two and partly due to the extreme nature of filming a big budget action thriller.

鈥淥ur Day One was me throwing her against a cabinet and we both had our hands in each other鈥檚 armpits. And it was in that moment that I was like, 鈥極h, my God, I have a sweaty armpit. And Scarlett Johansson is touching me,鈥欌�� Pugh said. 鈥淥nce that ice is broken, you know, best mates. Weird first day, though, to start with.鈥�

It was a fittingly epic endeavor, shooting over 87 days in London, Norway, Budapest, Morocco and Atlanta, with showstopping fights, motorcycle stunts, car chases and even a skydiving sequence. For Pugh, who is more known for slightly less spectacle driven films like 鈥淢idsommar鈥� and 鈥淟ittle Women,鈥� it was an eye-opening experience.

鈥淚t was just so impressive to see so many departments doing so many things. And you were completely involved into the process and the creating of it. And I just really appreciated how much you were expected to be there for the whole journey,鈥� Pugh said. 鈥淚t only made then waiting and watching the film a year later just even more exciting because you鈥檙e like, 鈥極h, my God, that took so many days to shoot and there we are flying through the air on a bike.鈥欌��

鈥淏lack Widow鈥� has the distinction of being the first Marvel movie debuting day-and-date on a streaming platform, after being delayed over a year due to the pandemic. Like a handful of Disney releases over the past year, it鈥檒l be available Friday in theaters globally and to rent on Disney+ for $30.

The film isn鈥檛 just a tribute and a goodbye to a beloved character, though. It also kicks off 鈥淧hase Four鈥� of the Marvel Cinematic Universe after an unplanned two-year gap in Marvel theatrical releases following 鈥淎vengers: Endgame鈥� (and, technically, 鈥淪pider-Man: Far From Home.鈥�)

The stakes for big budget Marvel movies are always high, but 鈥淏lack Widow鈥� will also be a litmus test not just because of the unconventional release strategy, but also as a gauge for audience interest in the cinematic juggernaut going forward.

After the 23-film build to 鈥淓ndgame,鈥� which currently holds the title of second-highest grossing film of all time after a re-release of 鈥淎vatar鈥� during the pandemic, Marvel is going into unchartered territory with new characters in films like 鈥淪hang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,鈥� set for September, and 鈥淓ternals鈥� in November. But Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige isn鈥檛 stressing much about that. This new phase, he said, is one of 鈥渘ew beginnings鈥� moving forward.

鈥淲ithin our movies, there鈥檚 this big shared experience that all the characters had with this, what we call the blip. Now, in real life, we all, as human beings on earth, have had the shared experience of this pandemic, of this lockdown. So there is an interesting parallel that we鈥檙e that we were playing on in our stories,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been two years since we鈥檝e had a film in theaters and we are ready. I hope the fans are ready.鈥�

鈥擫indsey Bahr, The Associated Press