Black Widow director reveals why a rumored cameo does not show up

Black Widow has arrived in cinemas, and it's notable that one heavily rumored cameo has not made the final cut. In fact, the character was never expected to appear in the Marvel Phase 4 movie despite reports to the counter.

Warning: if you don't want to know who's not in Black Widow, then turn back now. However, this piece will only reveal why this person's not in the movie, and go no further into the Black Widow plot.

Alright, so before Black Widow was released, there were multiple rumors swirling that Iron Man would make an appearance. The reports stemmed from a seemingly off-the-cuff mention in the trade magazine Deadine, with speculators hoping to see potentially cut footage from Captain America: Civil War in the new movie.

That would certainly make sense from a timeline standpoint, as Black Widow takes place concurrently with Civil War and before Avengers: Infinity War. However, director Cate Shortland and producer Kevin Feige decided against including any of the other major Marvel superheroes.

"Initially, there was discussions about everything, about all of the different characters," she tells GamesRadar+ and Total Film. "What we decided was, and I think Kevin was really great, he said, 'She doesn't need the boys.' We didn't want it to feel like she needs the support. We want her to stand alone. And she does."

Robert Downey Jr., who plays Iron Man, has made no secret of not appearing in the movie. Asked about a cameo by Entertainment Tonight, he responded: "Right. Great. I mean, it would be nice if they notified me. Forewarned is forearmed."

Of course, that could have just been a fake-out, but those who have watched Black Widow will know that Iron Man does not make an appearance. 

• The Black Widow post-credits scene
• The Black Widow ending explained
• A major Black Widow spoiler was revealed in Avengers

It's notable that Black Widow is one of the more violent and visceral Marvel movies, which is something Shortland also spoke about with us before the movie's release. Check out that interview here. Black Widow is in cinemas and on Disney Plus via Premier Access now.

For more on Black Widow from Cate Shortland, be sure to check out our extended feature on the making of the Marvel movie, also featuring interviews with Pugh, Scarlett Johansson, and Rachel Weisz.