Florence Pugh excites Marvel fans with ‘sneaky’ update as she reprises Black Widow role in new film

Florence Pugh has delighted Marvel fans with an update from the set of the forthcoming film Thunderbolts.

In Thunderbolts, Pugh will reprise the role of Yelena Belova, the sister of Scarlet Johansson’s Black Widow. She originated the part in 2021’s Black Widow, appearing as the character again in the Disney+ series Hawkeye.

In a video shared to Pugh’s Instagram page, the 28-year-old actor is seen in costume addressing the camera.

“Hey guys, how are you doing?” she said. “I know I’ve dropped off for a little bit, but that’s partially because I was whisked off to Atlanta to shoot a movie that I’m not really supposed to talk about.

“But I can show you things, sneakily, as long as you don’t tell anyone… I can show you a sneak peek of the set. They’re shooting. I’ll be quiet now.”

In the clip, the Dune: Part Two star proceeds to give fans a tour of the production lot and some of the sets being used for the film, before meeting with the film’s director, Jake Schreier.

Thunderbolts, due to come out in cinemas in 2025, will focus on an ensemble of heroes, and stars Sebastian Stan, Hannah John-Kamen, Wyatt Russell, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, David Harbour, Olga Kurylenko, and Harrison Ford.

Speaking to The Independent last month, another of the film’s stars, Geraldine Viswanathan, revealed that Thunderbolts will be a stylistic departure from previous Marvel films, which relied heavily on green screens for special effects.

“I don’t expect to do a lot of green screen,” said Viswanathan, who most recently starred in Ethan Coen’s Drive-Away Dolls. “Jake Schreier, our director, has a really cool and different vision for this and it’s all gonna be pretty practical. So that’s really exciting.”

“It’s kind of taking on a new life,” she continued. “So I don’t really know what to expect. I’m not expecting the traditional way that Marvel movies have been made. I think this will be different.”

Scarlett Johansson and Florence Pugh in ‘Black Widow’ (Marvel Studios)

Much of the interest surrounding Thunderbolts has concerned the addition of Ford to the cast, with the Indiana Jones actor playing General Thunderbolt Ross.

An interview with Ford went viral last year after the actor appeared completely bemused when a fan asked a deep-dive question about Marvel lore.

Pugh recently starred in the hit sci-fi blockbuster Dune: Part Two, and also appeared in Christopher Nolan’s Oscar-winning biopic Oppenheimer.

From news to politics, travel to sport, culture to climate – The Independent has a host of free newsletters to suit your interests. To find the stories you want to read, and more, in your inbox, click here.