After years of fan demand, Marvel Studios appears to be finally moving ahead with a Black Widow film with the hiring of screenwriter Jac Schaeffer (Nasty Women). Initial reports indicate the project is still in the very early stages, with studio President Kevin Feige only having made his decision to hire Schaeffer shortly before the New Year. However, this marks the first concrete evidence that Marvel is serious about giving the fan-favorite character her own film. That raises the obvious question: What took so long? To understand the nearly decade-long delay, we need to look back at the days before the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Long before Feige helped to launch the MCU, with 2008's Iron Man, a Black Widow film was actually in development at Lionsgate, which then controlled the character rights. It was announced in 2004 the studio hoped to develop both Iron Fist and Black Widow in a budding slate of Marvel films that began with The Punisher, starring Thomas Jane. Those films, of course, never came to fruition, but Lionsgate did get pretty close to at least bringing the ex-KGB assassin to life on the big screen with the hiring of David Hayter (X-Men, X-Men 2) to write and direct. Hayter completed screenplay that stuck relatively close to Natasha Romanoff's comic book origins. However, the project was shelved before it could advance because of the poor performance of Aeon Flux, the 2005 sci-fi spy film starring Charlize Theron, which failed to recoup its $65 million budget. As Hayter explained, that was the final nail in the coffin. "Aeon Flux didn’t open well," he recalled in 2011, "and three days after it opened, the studio said, “We don’t think it’s time to do this movie.”'

Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow
Scarlett Johansson debuts as Black Widow in Iron Man 2.

The Black Widow film rights eventually reverted to Marvel, and the character made her big-screen debut in 2010's Iron Man 2, played by Scarlett Johansson. To say she's become a staple of the MCU would be an understatement, as Johansson has reprised the role in four films, with Avengers: Infinity War arriving in May. That's led fans wonder why the studio has never given the character a solo film over the course of the past decade.

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Johansson has never shied away from the topic, and has expressed continued interest. And at one point, there was at least some movement on a film, with Guardians of the Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman produced a script treatment for a potential Black Widow project as far back as 2010. However, that obviously never went anywhere.

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When Johansson's career hit new highs Luc Besson's 2014 sci-fi thriller Lucy, which earned $463.4 million worldwide, many believed Marvel would at long last push the button on a Black Widow film. Instead, the studio announced it would at last produce a female-led superhero film -- only not with Johansson's Black Widow: Captain Marvel, starring Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, is moving ahead at full steam, with a release planned for 2019. So, what's changed in recent months to convince Marvel to get behind Black Widow? Did the critical and commercial success of director Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman help shift Marvel's view? Or has the forthcoming spy thriller Red Sparrow, starring Jennifer Lawrence in a very Black Widow-like role, helped to force Marvel's hand?

Scarlett Johansson in Lucy
Scarlett Johansson in Lucy

It's more likely a combination of the two. If you'll recall, emails from the Sony hack revealed that Marvel Chairman and former CEO Ike Perlmutter seemed to resist the idea of female-led superhero films because of the poor box-office performances of Elektra, Catwoman and Supergirl (the latter of which was released in 1984). Starring Jennifer Garner, the Daredevil spinoff Elektra earned just $56.7 million, while Halle Berry's Catwoman made just $82.1 million. Unfortunately, as far as Hollywood is concerned, if a female-led film bombs, there's little need to pursue another.

Thankfully, however, a 2015 reorganization led Marvel Studios to be moved under Walt Disney Studios, free of Perlmutter. Feige seemingly now has more control than ever. Why does this matter? Since the release of 2016's Captain America: Civil War, the mega-producer has expressed continued interest in developing a Black Widow solo film; in fact, he went as far as to say he was "committing" to the project. And despite never offering much official news on its development, he's never strayed from those comments about Black Widow.

Scarlett Johansson in Avengers: Infinity War

Fast forward to last year, as filming on Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4 continued in Atlanta, and brought together many MCU actors for the first time, including Brie Larson (Captain Marvel), Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), Evangeline Lilly (Wasp), and Johansson. That led to the women approaching Feige about a possible all-female film. According to the actresses, Feige didn't necessarily write off the idea. Of course, with two years' worth of films still on the line, we don't necessarily know what projects are next for the studio after Phase Three. Feige has previously teased a "very different" MCU following Avengers 4, and a Black Widow film could very well prove to be part of that. And as Wonder Woman has shown, giving a female hero the spotlight can pay off. That film, directed by Patty Jenkins, not only debuted to acclaim from critics and fans, but also pulled in an astounding $821 million worldwide.

With Black Panther right around the corner and already looking at a massive box office, now seems like the perfect time for Marvel to firmly commit to the Black Widow film the studio has been teasing for years.