Disney’s upcoming film Black Widow is set to release next month, and when it does, fans will be introduced to David Harbour’s Alexei Shostakov, also known as Red Guardian. Speaking at a press conference for the upcoming film, Harbour spoke about his character, and how he’d love to see more of his origins explored.
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“What’s funny about Alexei, you have this 25-year gap we don’t know about (in the movie),” Harbour said (via Deadline). “We see him in Ohio and in the prison. And even before the prison, there was a time when he was the Red Guardian, he must have put the suit back on. There is this period of time where he has all these stories about his life. It’s questionable whether or not they’re real.”
Harbour went on to talk about the connection between Red Guardian and Captain America, as they both came up during the Cold War. “I do think the classic Cold War thing is a really fun and funny dynamic between these two guys and the fact that they came up like nuclear warheads like in an arms race together. I think it’s a great concept that could be explored further.”
Set between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, the upcoming film will serve as the first feature in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 4. It centers around Natasha Romanoff as she confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.
Black Widow stars MCU vet Scarlett Johansson, David Harbour, Florence Pugh, Rachel Weisz, Ray Winstone, and O-T Fagbenle. Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff was last seen by fans during Avengers: Endgame, where she broke their hearts by sacrificing her life in order for Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton/Hawkeye to obtain the Soul stone in Vormir.
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Black Widow is directed by Cate Shortland (Lore) from a screenplay written by WandaVision head writer Jac Schaeffer, who recently strengthened her partnership with the studio by signing an overall deal with Marvel Studios and 20th Television.
The film is currently slated to arrive in theaters and on Disney+ with Premier Access on July 9.