Former Marvel star Scarlett Johansson has explained why she asked Marvel to remove her name from the Thunderbolts credits.
The 40-year-old Lost in Translation actor shared the detail in a sit-down conversation with David Harbour, with whom she starred in Thunderbolts prequel Black Widow.
During the chat with Interview magazine, Harbour asked Johansson if she had seen the film, adding that her character is “all over this movie”.
When Johansson said she hadn’t, Harbour followed up with: “OK. You are an executive producer on it. Congratulations.”
The actor then said she had “asked to have my credit removed” due to the fact she had no creative input. “I wasn’t involved,” she stated.
Johansson made her MCU debut as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widowin 2010’s Iron Man 2 , alongside Robert Downey Jr and Gwyneth Paltrow, and has since made multiple appearences in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
Avengers: Endgame saw the death of her character, but she reprised her role in 2021’s Black Widow, which followed her character before the events of 2016’s Captain America: Civil War and served as a prequel focusing on her life before she joined the Avengers.
Later in her conversation with Stranger Things Harbour, Johansson reflected on her 11-year experience in the MCU, saying: “Some of the films that I did for Marvel engaged my character more than others”.
She continued: “In some of the other films, the cast was so enormous and there was so much plot to serve that you start to feel like you’re a device to move it along.”
The Marriage Story star also opened up about the commitment required when taking on those roles, explaining: “Your identity is wrapped up in this job for a long time and if you’re not doing engaging work as an actor, you feel a little cagey sometimes.’”
Earlier last month in an interview with Vanity Fair, the actor discussed a potential return for her character.
“I miss my buddies and really would love to be with them forever, but what works about the character is that her story is complete. I don’t want to mess with that. For fans, too – it’s important for them.”
Thunderbolts has grossed $374.5 million (£276.69m) globally to date, making it one of Marvel’s best received film in years. Earlier this year, Captain America: Brave New World struggled to break even against its $180m budget before eventually earning $413m (£306m) at the box office, continuing a trend of noticeable fatigue around MCU films.
Thunderbolts was marred in a minor controversy after Marvel opted to reveal a spoiler from the story when changing its title in the campaign material to The New Avengers.
All eyes will now be set on Marvel’s next major release, The Fantastic Four: First Steps.
The new MCU film, starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn as the heroic quartet, is set to premiere on 25 July.
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