Marvel has officially dropped the trailer for the next MCU movie Black Widow, offering several new comic additions to the MCU, including David Harbour's Red Guardian. One slightly more intriguing character, however, is Natasha's "sister" Yelena Belova, played by Florence Pugh
While Yelena has a small role in the Black Widow trailer, the fact that the pair punch first and make up later confirms at least some of their comic book relationship is at work. Belova's importance might be understated in Natasha's solo film, but knowing her role in Marvel Comics, could the movies be setting her up to take a similar role as the next Black Widow, too?
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Yelena's only other notable appearance sees her making a snarky comment and rolling her eyes when Red Guardian suggests the Russian operatives make up a "family." And with Yelena clearly respecting her fellow Black Widow assassin, but being less interested in making friends or playing a hero, this early version of the character is on track to bring the Marvel Comics version, and her most notable stories, onto the big screen. Should Marvel's film side be looking to make the same moves as the comics, of course.
Yelena Belova first appeared way back in Inhumans #5 in 1999. She is a spy trained by the Red Room, an origin she apparently shares with her MCU counterpart. She went on to appear in two Black Widow mini-series as well as a three-issue MAX mini-series entitled Black Widow: Pale Little Spider. Initially, she is shown to have something of a competitive love-hate relationship with Natasha, and she eventually runs afoul of Sauron and the Avengers during a SHIELD mission in the Savage Land.
The encounter leads her burned and broken until AIM offers to make the Super-Adaptoid, giving her the ability to mimic the abilities of anyone around her. She appears to join Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers, but this is ultimately revealed to be Natasha in disguise. After Natasha's death at the hands of Hydra Cap in Secret Empire, Yelena dons the Black Widow mantle and was last seen eliminating Hydra agents around the world. Marvel has a habit of reshaping characters and implementing new and exciting twists in both comics and movies. And while Pugh is certainly a worthy successor, it's also possible her rise as the next Black Widow might not be as clear-cut as expected. She could be Natasha's successor after Romanoff died in Avengers: Endgame, or she could be Natasha's enemy. Or like her comic book counterpart, she could be both.
What is clear is that Pugh seems perfectly capable of inhabiting Yelena. She is no stranger to family tensions or fighting against the odds, having done both in the critically acclaimed Saraya-Jade "Paige" Bevis WWE biopic Fighting with My Family. She also followed it up with a nail-biting performance in Ari Aster's Midsommar and is currently set to play Amy March in Little Women. Pugh is definitely a rising talent given the success of the first two films alone, and it's likely the MCU will want to capitalize on her presence moving forward.
Black Widow has a pretty significant chunk of time to play with in adapting the existing comic book lore for both Natasha and Yelena, since the film is set between Civil War and Infinity War before Natasha dyed her hair blonde and threw in with Steve Rogers and his gang of heroes on the run. How will Yelena factor into all of this, and where was she when Nat was all but running the Avengers after the blip? Much of Pugh's role in the future MCU is pure speculation, but it's certainly not without merit.
With a Ms. Marvel slated for Disney+ and plenty of speculation regarding Young Avengers, Marvel is definitely interested in developing a new generation of heroes - including a potential new Black Widow.
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