Last year, when word first broke that Scarlett Johansson was up for the role of Black Widow in "Iron Man 2," one of the most anticipated questions among fans was how Johansson would look in the character's skin-tight outfit.
However, when Johannson saw the actual costume for the first time, the actress had a brief moment of trepidation.
"I knew it was going to be some kind of sexy unitard, because I had researched the character in the comics," revealed Johansson during an interview with Sci-Fi Movie Page. "I’ve never worn anything like it before, so I had a freak-out moment that lasted about half a day, but then I said ‘Okay, time to suck it up’ and just went full force into getting in shape to wear the costume and perform the physical action so it looked just right.”
Johansson has previously spoken at length about her physical regime to get into shape for her "Iron Man 2" role. She also expressed her desire to keep her Black Widow costume a secret in order to surprise her husband, Ryan Reynolds — a long-time comic book fan and the star of "Green Lantern" and the upcoming "Deadpool" movie.
In order to convincingly portray the Black Widow's deadly skills on screen, Johansson also spent numerous hours training in various martial arts disciplines,
“Black Widow is an expert in hand-to-hand combat," said Johansson. "She's a mixed martial artist, has a dance and gymnastics background, so she combines all of these aspects into one kick-ass fighting machine so I dedicated myself to putting in the hours, repetitions, and training with the stunt team until I felt comfortable that I could sell each particular move.”
“I’m very sensitive about when you see an action sequence and the shot is on the back of somebody’s head, and then all of the sudden it cuts and the actor gives that one dramatic pose at the end and it’s obvious that it was not them in the shot before," added Johansson. "It’s the lamest thing, because you want to see the actor risking their own life, and that is part of what sells it to an audience. So that’s why I worked for months to prepare and I really didn’t want to be perceived as a little wuss who couldn’t do it.”
Johansson also described how she performed her first action sequence in the movie.
“When I first saw it completed and choreographed by the stunt team, I just thought to myself, ‘Oh my god, I don’t know how I’m going to do this,'" exclaimed Johansson. "But then I took a deep breath and, with all the training and repetitions we put in during rehearsals, it just started to flow and it became a reality as I was doing it."
"It was a lot of fun for me to work with all the people [stunt supervisor] Tommy Harper assembled because they are some of the greatest stunt guys out there and were so incredibly supportive," continued Johansson. "It was very frustrating at times, which I am sure you will see on the DVD, but I think we really nailed it and when Tommy Harper says you got it, then I know we got it and it will be great fun to watch.”
"Iron Man 2" infiltrates theaters on May 07.
Are you pleased to hear about Johansson's dedication to the role? Should the Black Widow appear in the "Avengers" movie or be given her own movie franchise? Accept this mission and let us know what you're thinking in the comment section or on Twitter!
