UPDATE #2: We now have a better version of the second photo of Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow!
UPDATE #1: Entertainment Weekly has posted a clearer version of the cover shot, though it’s still pretty small. They also have quotes from the cast on the characters in the sequel. Here’s several excerpts:
When Marvel Studios first announced the sequel, no one was sure what the movie would be about. Downey, director Jon Favreau, screenwriter Justin Theroux, and the rest of the creative team struck upon the idea of introducing two very different foes for Stark. On one side is Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), a fast-talking weapons manufacturer who fancies himself the next Tony Stark; on the other, Vanko, who, while incarcerated in a Russian prison, creates his own battle-suit, which shoots devastating, whip-like beams. Hammer and Whiplash join forces to take down Downey?s character, Tony Stark. Rourke, for his part, wanted to instill some lightness into the role of the heavy. “I told Favreau, ‘I don’t want to just play him as a one-dimensional p—-,'” he says. “He let me have a cockatoo, who I talk to and get drunk with while I?m making my suit.”
Adding more flesh and blood to the new movie, Scarlett Johansson joined the cast as Stark?s mysterious new assistant, Natasha, who has an alter ego of her own, Black Widow. That introduction inevitably sparks romantic tension between Stark and former assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), who?s been promoted to CEO of Stark Industries. “The men want it to be, like, ‘Ooh, the girls are fighting over Tony,’ but it’s not as standard as that,” says Paltrow. “There’s a weird male catfight fantasy. Downey agrees. He believes what differentiates the franchise from other superhero series can be summarized as follows: “We’re horny. Not, like, can’t-bring-your-kids horny, but just?horny.”
ORIGINAL STORY: Yes, we know, these screenshots are really crappy, but… they are the first photos of Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow in Iron Man 2! The pics, which were shown during “Entertainment Tonight,” come from Friday’s issue of Entertainment Weekly, so we should have some hi-res versions of all of them soon, stay tuned. Opening in theaters on May 7, 2010, the Jon Favreau-directed sequel is wrapping up filming this week as well.
