Who should be the main villain of the Black Widow movie?

Black Widow is finally getting her movie and it's time to ask the question: Who should be the villain? The thing is about her is that she's mainly a team player and doesn't really have a defined rogues gallery. If you asked someone "who is Black Widow's archenemy", they might struggle to find an answer. But any superhero movie needs a villain, so who should be it?

My personal suggestion is this guy:

Taskmaster could be a good fit. His unique power of being able to mimic any move just by looking at them could make Taskmaster the ideal physical threat to fight Black Widow, since he can match her best efforts without even trying. That, and he's a special infiltrator, master of disguise, agent and mercenary who can cause all kinds of trouble for Romanoff without having to directly combat her. Also, they don't have to kill him off either, in fact he could be spared at the end, which could set him up for a possible Thunderbolts movie (something that some fans think they're hinting at).

What do you think?

Agreed.

I'd like to see Josef, Bucky and the other Winter Soldiers again too.

I could see it being Madame Masque or Viper/ Madame Hydra.

I'd prefer to see it be Viper ,though, could be a perfect lead in to CW: TWS, foreshadowing Hydra's roots in S.H.I.E.L.D.

Taskmaster would be incredible

Taskmaster isn't really someone I see as a Black Widow villain, save him for later. He doesn't seem like the right fit. Viper would be a better fit.

As far as I understand that the movie is supposed to be a prequel to the modern Widow, I think Bucky/Winter Soldier would actually be perfect.

Alternatively it could be set so far back that the 'bad guy' is Nick Fury who then ends up liberating her from the Russians.

I was intially gonna say Yelena Belanova, but she's really not established enough in Marvel as a character, not to mention that I'd prefer a male villain.

While the Winter Soldier does make sense, I think we saw enough between the 2 during TWS, and in all honesty, the dynamic they have in the Earth-616, I don't think it would fit in the MCU. It's a timeline problem, it just wouldn't make sense due to vital plot points being different between WWII and the Fall of SHIELD.

Another interesting idea would be to not introduce someone who's considered an actual villain, but rather Natasha dealing with her individual operations and training and eventually getting on SHIELD's radar with all the Hawkeye and SHIELD stuff to come at the very end. If it's a strong prequel movie, it should be about Natasha few years after the Red Room, or her time at the KGB.

She had an encounter with the Winter Soldier post-SHIELD, because he's Hydra, so that wouldn't work if the above is true. I was also going to say Bullseye, but clearly he's locked on Netflix and is much more suited for Daredevil. But those street level fighters like him and Elektra just have enough history with Romanova in the comics that it would be good to see them together.

edit: Taskmaster sounds great.

Hawkeye... :P

I know it won’t happen, but Ward

The lotion

We better see Winter Soldier for a little, but I'd like Taskmaster as the main villain

Taskmaster would be a surprise. Great choice.

That'd be cool as hell, but how would it even work in-universe? He wasn't revealed to anyone as a bad guy until the events of TWS. If Nat knew her colleague was a bad guy so early on, his SHIELD cover would've been blown way beforehand...

Maybe he's part of the SHIELD team that fights her as a Russian spy or maybe she doesn't figure out who he is. I don't really know

Hawkeye was sent solo to take her out.

Stop crushing my dreams ok

whatever

I agree, it should be Taskmaster.

It's almost certainly going to be Yelena Belanova. MCU likes it's duality.

Taskmaster would stomp her though

Non formulaic meme filled writing

Taskmaster

@rbt: Hasn't MCU been getting criticism for having villains that are too similar to the hero? I know in AMatW made sure to use a villain with a distinct power set because Ant-Man was criticized for being yet another example.

@_kingoflatveria: Well that's the thing, she normally stomps other people, so having someone like him make her the perfect underdog.

Taskmaster would be cool.

I'd personally go with this. If the movie is to be set in the past, I think the best course of action would be to have the movie focus entirely on her experience with the Red Room, how she changed her viewpoints of the Soviet government/covert ops and how she was convinced to defect to SHIELD. This could retroactively add more depth to her character and tie into certain lines that she said in previous Marvel movies that alluded to her past, thereby making them have even more weight due to witnessing the proper context firsthand.

There doesn’t really need to be a main villain, just focus on a certain mission that Natasha goes rogue in and have her deal with fighting against former comrades in arms in order to save the day. You could use one of the characters, maybe a former partner of hers, to set up to be the main villain in the sequel.

And please, please,please have some connection to Dottie Underwood (The OG Black Widow) from Agent Carter.

They have, but I don't know if that's really going to stop them from not doing it.

That doesn't really work because this is a superhero movie, and having no villain just makes the whole thing unfocused.

Have her society be the "antagonist". Natasha's development over time and realizing the harsh and bitter truth of the government she's working under and what she's going to do about it is the focus of the movie. The climax would be her going rogue and fighting off former comrades including one that could be set up to be the main villain in the sequel.

Think Captain America: TWS but with the World Leaders being the overarching villains in the background as opposed to Pierce being the big bad they have to physically stop. She could still have a secondary villain similar to the role Bucky played (ie being the dragon). But the main villain won't be someone she has to simply punch or shoot to into win.

Besides Marvel movies are often criticized for having weak villains anyway.

@dstreet45: "Besides Marvel movies are often criticized for having weak villains anyway".

Not since the start of Phase 3. Each movie has been praised for how much of an improvement they are from the Phase 2 villains, so that doesn't apply.

@lazorguns: Fair enough, but I still think the movie should focus more on Natasha development into the person she currently is and build up the villain for the next movie.

There is no eay it would be Taskmaster, it would make no sense.

@thewatcherking: How so? You could say that about Ghost not making since as the Ant-Man villain seeing as how (s)he is supposed to be an enemy of Iron Man.

I haven't seen Ant Man yet so I can't comment on it, but it makes little sense to grab two characters who don't even interact in the comics much(if at all) and decide one of them is going to be the other's antigonist.

@lazorguns: the capitalist pigs

@thewatcherking: Well they've kinda already done that.

So...

Elektra... anyone?

That doesn't mean they should.

Is the movie confirmed ?

@thewatcherking: I have news that might blow your mind...

The MCU changes things from the comics.

@originalcaptain: Yes, it has a director who had just been hired for the part.

Viper/Madame Hydra

Nice ! Already hyped

I obviously know that, but that doesn't mean this is a good idea regardless. I guess the MCU should have Paste Pot Pete as a main villian to Thor right? He isn't a Thor villian but it doesn't matter since the MCU changes things from the comics, correct? I simply think Taskmaster is a poor choice, if you disagree that's fine.

Way to use total hyperbole to support your "argument", pal.

@lazorguns: Taskmaster would be good but i refer Sin ....friend of Crossbones and daughter of Redskull.........

How about Bucky?

Maybe the movie could be about her encounter with Winter Soldier.