Instead of giving a distraught guy she's supposed to be keeping an eye on real advice, it sounds as if Nat's trying to seduce Tony in the moment. This line makes little sense when Nat's revealed as Black Widow a few scenes later and explains she was sent to watch Stark after he was poisoned. When Tony asks what Nat would do if it were her last birthday, she oddly tells him, "I'd do whatever I wanted to do with whoever I wanted to do it with." Nat's entire appearance in "Iron Man 2" was meant to make her out to be this mysterious sexy lady because of the tight dresses she wears and the hyper-focus on the way she walks, moves, and holds herself. It's tough to grasp that she's actually thrilled to wear a plungier neckline. That's great," Johansson nods and says, "Good," but her body language seems to disagree a bit as you briefly see her look down and clasp her hands as Zophres and Favreau walk away. In one of the behind-the-scenes features on the making of the film (available on Disney+), when costume designer Mary Zophres tells director Jon Favreau about dressing Johansson in a "plungier" neckline, Johansson makes a face, scrunching her eyes a little as if she's waiting to see what he'll say. The actress doesn't seem to have been thrilled with the wardrobe choice either. It sticks out so much that it looks like a mistake, drawing viewers' eyes to look at her chest unnecessarily. Johannson is in a dress that's so low-cut you can see her bra. That's not even the worst moment in this scene. It's very clear Tony only has one thing on his mind when it comes to Natasha for the majority of "Iron Man 2" until he learns she works with Nick Fury. Pepper, knowing Tony (at the time) goes from woman to woman, immediately shuts him down with a swift, "No." Within 2 minutes and 30 seconds of knowing Nat, Tony tells Pepper, "I want one," not even referring to Natasha as a person, but as an object. Tony, wanting to learn more about her, pulls up some racy modeling photos of her. Tony's former-assistant-and-now boss Pepper Potts quickly reminds him that Natasha is "potentially a very expensive sexual harrassment lawsuit if you keep ogling her like that." After staring at her wordlessly, he steps aside to watch as Happy gives her a lesson. Pepper apologizes for his eccentric attitude and the camera follows as Natasha slowly slinks between the ropes to join Tony on the mat. He invites her into a boxing ring, calling her lady and saying it would please the court (Tony being the court) if she entered the ring. He effectively becomes one of those loopy cartoon characters ogling over a woman with their eyes popping out of their head. Our first impression of Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is through Tony Stark's gaze and it tells us that she's hot, can handle herself, and that he's interested in her for more than just a job.įrom the moment Natasha walks into a room with Stark in "Iron Man 2," he can't focus and keep his eyes off of her. This is Nat's first appearance in 2010's "Iron Man 2." It sets the tone for how we're supposed to view Nat in the MCU, and it's not great. No one was taking her character seriously until about five years into her MCU tenure. Maybe this is partially why it took over a decade for Johansson to get her own solo film. The following year's "Avengers: Age of Ultron," directed by Joss Whedon, was the last time we saw the character grossly mistreated on screen as little more than a love interest. Of Natasha's eight appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the film which treats her with the least respect is her introduction in 2010's "Iron Man 2."Ģ014's "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" began taking her character more seriously after one specific outfit change was nixed. She doesn't go after or flirt with Hawkeye because he's married (and is her best friend) and Thor is taken by Jane in the MCU.
When Nat's time in the MCU ends, she has either hit on or been seen as a potential love interest for the majority of her Avengers teammates (Iron Man, Captain America, and Hulk). Black Widow finally gets the respect she deserves in Marvel's standalone film.