BW Industires

• Black Widow


  A film made by Marvel Studios, a subsidiary of Disney
• Marvel Studios


  • Makes films, TV shows, animations, and music
  • Has around 500 employees
• Disney


  • Parent company of Marvel Studios
  • One of the biggest film companies in the world
  • Has around 230,000 employees worldwide
• Disney bought Marvel Studios in 2009 for $4 billion
• Black Widow had a production budget of around $200 million
• It's estimated Disney/Marvel spent another $200 million on marketing and distribution, making the total cost around $400 million
• Black Widow is one of the most expensive films Marvel has ever made
• Development of Black Widow film


  1. Rights bought by Lionsgate in 2004

  2. Lionsgate shelved project due to poor performance of other female-led films

  3. Rights reverted to Marvel in 2006/2007

  4. Marvel decided to make film due to female empowerment movement
• Scarlett Johansson


  • Played Black Widow in previous Marvel films
  • Advocated for a female director
  • Helped bring in pre-sold audience
• Kate Shortland


  • Directed Black Widow
  • Researched female-led action films to inspire the film
• Black Widow production took 6 months
• Filming locations


  1. Norway

  2. Budapest

  3. Morocco

  4. Pinewood Studios

  5. Atlanta, Georgia
• The camera crew alone had 300 people
• There were 320 visual effects shots done by Digital Domain
• Trickster helped with digital effects on Taskmaster's mask and the blue veil
• Over 1,000 staff were credited for visual effects work
• Music


  • Disney purchased rights to use big name songs
  • They also created original music with a 118-person orchestra and 60-person choir
• Test screenings


  1. Audiences provided feedback

  2. Some scenes with Scarlett Johansson in underwear were cut for being too sexist

  3. Audiences wanted more scenes with Yelena and Natasha together, so additional scenes were filmed
• Casting


  • Scarlett Johansson brought in pre-sold audience from previous Marvel films
  • Florence Pugh brought in British audience
  • David Harbour brought in Stranger Things fans
  • Other familiar actors like Rachel Weisz, Ray Winstone, and William Hurt were cast
• Vertically integrated company


  A company that owns its own production, distribution, and marketing operations
• Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures was the distributor for Black Widow
• Black Widow was announced at the San Diego Comic Con

  2019
• The intention was to release the film in May 2020 but it had to be delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
• Marketing campaign for Black Widow


  1. Used posters and trailers focused on Black Widow's black costume and symbol

  2. When the film was delayed, they restarted the marketing campaign using a white costume and focusing on Black Widow's legacy as an Avenger
• The new 2021 trailer on YouTube got 70 million views in the first 24 hours
• Disney placed a Black Widow ad during the Super Bowl, which is very expensive
• Promotional activities by Disney


  • ESPN documentary on Scarlett Johansson's stunt double
  • Marvel Studios Legends TV episode on Black Widow
  • Cast appearing on chat shows, radio, and in magazines
• Marvel released comic books and graphic novels based on Black Widow to promote the film
• Disney put up billboards featuring real audience tweets about the film
• The fictional character Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow) has her own social media profiles
• Due to COVID-19, the film had a simultaneous release in cinemas and on Disney+ with Premier Access
• Scarlett Johansson was unhappy with the simultaneous streaming release


  She sued Disney for breach of contract and loss of earnings
• Black Widow made $320 million at the box office and $60 million on Disney+ in the first weekend
• The film was released in over 4,100 cinemas in the US, including 375 IMAX, 1,500 3D, and 275 other premium formats
• The home release of Black Widow is scheduled for August 10th on digital, Blu-ray, and DVD, followed by a wider Disney+ release