Black Widow Villains Revealed

Black Widow certainly has an impressive cast, but exactly which character each actor is playing has remained unclear. After SDCC, various interviews have started to paint a clearer picture of what Natasha Romanoff is up against in her solo cutting.

We of course know that Florence Pugh is playing Yelena Bolova, a fellow Russian spy in the Black Widow Program, both an adversary and sister figure of Natasha. These two have a personal and violent history in the comics that will be explored in this movie.

David Harbour has been very quiet about his role, but thanks to an interview with Rotten Tomatoes, we now know he'll be playing Alexei Shostokov, also known as Red Guardian. Red Guardian is Russia's equivalent of Captain America and married to Natasha for a time in the comics.

Rachel Weisz is playing Melina Vostokoff, also known as Iron Maiden. We don't know who is playing Taskmaster but there are signs that the villain may be a woman. Could Melina be a mashup of Iron Maiden and Taskmaster? That seems like a good bet.

O-T Fagbenle is playing S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Rick Mason, so maybe this will explore a time further in her past when she first gets recruited.

It looks like we're getting a lot of classic Black Widow foes in this one. Since we're probably only getting one Black Widow movie, there's a lot to pack in. This should be a fun ride.

- Brian Flinchbaugh