Like most MCU movies, Black Widow ended with a CG-heavy final act full of epic action. Some fans were disappointed to see the espionage thriller conclude on such a familiar note, but Scarlett Johansson's Natasha Romanoff at least got to go out on a high.
At this point, it's hardly breaking news to say that Marvel Studios typically makes sweeping changes to its movies during and after principal photography.
Speaking to Happy Sad Confused, Gran Turismo star David Harbour confirmed Black Widow's third act was being "reworked" while cameras were still rolling.
"I think they did want the opportunity to change some stuff," he recalls. "The interesting thing about Marvel that’s so great about them is they do rework stuff. Even big productions."
"Like 'Black Widow,' the entire third act was reworked as we were shooting, which is incredible. And so, they just want that freedom."
We're sure that was a somewhat chaotic experience for both Harbour and the rest of the cast but it definitely hasn't put the Red Guardian actor off returning to the MCU. We'll next see his Russian Super Soldier in Thunderbolts, a movie he's excited to start work on (this interview was conducted prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike).
"The script we have is really tight and really great," he teases. "And our director, Jake [Schreier], thinks it’s great. But they just want the freedom. They don’t want to be stuck in the middle of a shoot and then having to go like, 'We can’t rewrite this.'"
That last comment from Harbour is obviously a reference to why production was delayed shortly after the WGA strike began. Had Marvel Studios started shooting Thunderbolts in the midst of it, they wouldn't have been able to make any changes to the story until the strike ended.
Shortly after this conversion took place, actors joined writers on the picket line, meaning Thunderbolts was going to be paused either way. As a result, we currently have no idea when production is set to start up again.