Scarlett Johansson slams 'mess' Avengers film despite superhero movie grossing 1billion

Daily Mail​

16-05-2025

Scarlett Johansson has controversially branded the first Avengers film a 'mess' despite the movie grossing more than $1billion.
The actress, 40, has starred as Black Widow in the MCU since 2010 - with 2019's Avengers: Endgame becoming the second highest grossing film of all time.
However, the two time Oscar nominee has mixed feelings about 2012's Joss Whedon directed The Avengers due to the huge ensemble cast - which included Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Chris Evans as Captain America - and their 'insane' looks.
She told Vanity Fair: 'When we made the first Avengers, none of us knew what the potential would be. Iron Man was massively successful. It was huge; it built the studio of Marvel. And then Iron Man 2 was also very successful.
'There was Thor, and that character felt like it was from a completely different universe... It was such a different tone [from] the Iron Man movies. And then, of course, the Captain America movie had its whole own identity as well.
'And then when you added the characters all together, plus Hulk and Hawkeye, it just felt like a big mess, to be honest. Even on the set, it felt crazy, because we all looked insane. It was like, "What are we doing?"'
'I don't think anybody knew if it was gonna work or not. [Marvel Studios president] Kevin Feige knew it was gonna work; Joss Whedon knew it was gonna work. But the cast... it was blind faith, basically, that we all had in Joss and Kevin Feige.'
The Oscar nominee said the cast's opinion changed when they filmed the 'powerful' Battle of New York scene.
She said: 'The big scene where you see the 360 of all the characters together — that was the moment where all of us were like, 'I think this is maybe gonna work,' " Johansson said. "It felt powerful."
'It was an impossible movie that should not have worked, that really works as a film. Also, it's one of the most successful films of all time.'
The movie raked in more than $1.5billion at the box office and is the 12th highest grossing film of all time.
Elsewhere in the chat the star touched on the impact tech has had on not just the movie industry but also the Academy Awards.
The mother of two even made a dig at the awards show.
'These are people that are funding studios. It's all these big tech guys that are funding our industry, and funding the Oscars, and so there you go,' said the ex-wife of Ryan Reynolds.
'I guess we're being muzzled in all these different ways, because the truth is that these big tech companies are completely enmeshed in all aspects of our lives. I don't know how you fight that.'
The Marvel star also said she is worried about AI having not enough limits.
'There has to be some agreed-upon set of boundaries in order for [ AI ] to not be detrimental. I wish more people in the public eye would support and speak out about that—I don't know why that's not the case,' said Scarlett.
And the former child star also addressed working as a kid.
'Making decisions on your own—like, adult decisions as a kid—it's a dangerous thing, right?' she asked.
Scarlett said she was proud of herself for handling a tough star while filming Lost in Translation: 'I'm pretty proud of how I handled myself. I really just did the work, you know? It's a good tactic for pushing through stuff. Eyes on the prize.'
And she also touched on costar Bill Murray.
'Bill [Murray] was in a hard place,' Johansson said. 'Everybody was on tenterhooks around him, including our director and the full crew, because he was dealing with his…stuff.'
She'd never encountered an actor in that kind of 'headspace.
Earlier this year, Johansson ran into Murray at Saturday Night Live's 50th-anniversary special. 'He's such a different person now,' she noted. 'I think life has humbled him.'
When asked about the recent allegations of misconduct against Murray, Johansson said, 'That was really bad. But I also know COVID was a hard thing for him. Life—all these things have led up to him being held accountable for that kind of behavior…But you know what? How wonderful that people can change.'
Scarlett will star in Jurassic World Rebirth, premiering July 2 and her directorial debut, Eleanor the Great, premiers this week at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.