Black Widow and the problem with our female superheroes


Last week, a reporter asked Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner — two stars of the upcoming Avengers sequel — what they thought about the fact that Black Widow (portrayed by Scarlet Johansson) was hooking up with the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) rather than either of the fictional characters portrayed by the two men, Captain America or Hawkeye, like so many fans had hoped or expected. The men replied by jokingly calling Black Widow a “slut” and a “whore.” Evans then went on to describe her as a “flirt” who was “leading everyone on.”

Of course, there are gender stereotypes and general issues with the term “slut” and other things the two said, but I think the main culprit in this whole incident is the reporter herself. Why, of all the questions in the universe to ask about the film and the actors, are we discussing Black Widow’s dating patterns? Jeremy Renner has since stated: “I am sorry that this tasteless joke about a fictional character offended anyone.” I have to admit that he’s right in pointing out that the character is completely fictional. To ask the men to comment on her dating life seems a bit superfluous given that she’s not even real and the actors are also neither the screenwriters nor the comic book creators, but it also displays the resounding problem with how Hollywood depicts female superheroes.

For the first several minutes of Black Widow’s introduction in her previous  Marvel film Captain America: Winter Soldier, she skulks upon the deck of a ship and — while punching bad guys out of the way — grills Captain America on his love life. She suggests various prospects he could explore and almost reprimands him for not getting out into the dating scene. Why, I must ask, is this what Black Widow is preoccupied with during her first few moments with Captain America aboard a ship teeming with a bunch of bad guys in the middle of the ocean? Furthermore, why is Black Widow the only woman on the Avengers team?

This topic is by no means new. It seems to me that in the Marvel Universe and the entertainment industry at large, we only have room for one incredible woman at a time, while we have plenty of slots for men to fill to combat crime and become superstars. Besides Black Widow, we have Tony Starks’ girlfriend Pepper Potts and then the tertiary Agent Peggy Carter, who now has her own TV show on ABC. But in terms of film, screen time is relegated to a few brief moments of inciting inspiration for Captain America before he sets off to save the world again. All of the women aforementioned also happen to be skinny, yet somehow voluptuous and devastatingly beautiful. They are undeniable sex objects for the many men around them.

By asking about Black Widow’s love life, the reporter has perpetuated the stereotype that female superheroes are to be sexualized and objectified to the point where the most interesting aspect of their character is not their killer fighting abilities or astounding intellect or — gasp — their anger management issue that’s made acceptable by their superhuman strength, but simply, who she’s shacking up with.

What if we had a superhero in the Marvel mix that was a woman who wore glasses and could code the next life-saving algorithm within a matter of minutes, and the men were attracted to her brains most and not her body? Maybe she doesn’t have fiery red hair that was so perfectly curled and matched her on-point red lipstick or hourglass figure. Or what if they had a woman who also exploded into a mass of muscle at the slightest offense? How would the men label her? A drama queen? Or, maybe even worse, a crazy b-tch?

Though it’s true audience members have DC Comics’ upcoming Wonder Woman film starring Gal Gadot (slated for a 2017 release) to look forward to, even that film has already come with its own set of problems. Most recently, the more than capable director Michelle MacLaren has left the film, citing “creative differences” between herself and the producers. One must wonder, what exactly could those differences be coming from a female director who faced not only a male screenwriter but also a board of seven known producers, only one of whom is a woman (and also happens to be another producers’ wife).

With MacLaren gone, Warner Bros. execs quickly scrambled to find another director, and thankfully kept in line with their original idea of having a woman fill the position. Patty Jenkins, known for her career-starting film Monster starring Charlize Theron, has boarded the project and hopefully will add more to Wonder Woman’s mythology beyond being a brunette bombshell who can fit into a skin-tight golden one piece and thigh high boots. Come on, Patty, I, and possibly millions of other women, am rooting for you.

Minnie Schedeen is a sophomore majoring in critical studies. Her column, “Film Fatale,” ran every other Tuesday.

1 reply
  1. Liberty Minded
    Liberty Minded says:

    In superhero movies there is action, the romantic interludes cannot occupy much time. There simply is not enough time to develop more than one relationship in these types of films. The bonding and socializing of men is very different than that of women. It does not take much to have a believable bonding of men in a few short moments. In Reservoir Dogs, the bonding takes place around a table in a single scene. In Avengers it is also in a single scene..

    Men and women are different. I like to see attractive women on film and in comic books. The Marvel Universe is populated with many women. I remember as a teen, a poster entitled, “X-Men Women”. This is fantasy. Men date and marry women that are very different form the ones they view for entertainment.

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