The Batman 2 is currently in the works, and the latest updates are making it seem like it will fulfill one fantasy of Marvel fans about Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow and Sebastian Stan’s Bucky Barnes / Winter Soldier: Their romance arc.

Stan is set to appear as Harvey Dent, the District Attorney, whose alliance with the Caped Crusader eventually leads to his becoming the villain Two-Face. One of the city’s most notorious criminals, Harvey is split between his ‘good’ and ‘evil’ sides after his sanity fractured following a trial that left him horribly disfigured (via Forbes).

Johansson, on the other hand, has reportedly been cast in an unconfirmed role. Nonetheless, the speculation around her casting as Gilda Gold is pretty high. For those unversed, Gilda is Harvey’s wife and played a significant role in the best-selling comic book story arc The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale.

While that casting hasn’t been confirmed yet, there’s no doubt that Johansson would unarguably nail the role if cast in it. And if that actually happens, then fans might as well be able to see Bucky and Nat’s famously tragic romance in the Marvel comics materialize, just in a parallel universe.

A Look at Bucky’s Romance With Natasha in the Comics

Although the Marvel Cinematic Universe failed to put that arc on full display for the fans, Natasha Romanoff and James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes share quite a history together. After all, both of them were forged into human weapons by insidious forces and had to overcome their own instincts and programming to become some of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

In the comics universe, this pair met each other after Bucky ended up at the Red Room, an assassin training facility, after the Soviets turned him into the Winter Soldier, a deadly assassin who worked for Russia’s Department X. At the Red Room, he participated in the Black Widow Ops program as a trainer, meeting Nat there for the first time which eventually led to their affair.

However, when their handlers discovered about them, they were forcibly separated, largely by keeping Bucky in cryostasis when he wasn’t on a mission. Ultimately, both of them presumed that the other had died. 

That was until Captain America (2004) #6, when Bucky regained his lost memories through the Cosmic Cube after an encounter with Steve Rogers during his mission to steal the Cosmic Cube from Red Skull, and returned to the side of good. But then Civil War (2006) came out, which had Rogers dying at the hands of Crossbones and a brainwashed Sharon Carter after being pitted against Tony Stark over the Superhuman Registration Act.

As a result, he decided to reclaim Roger’s shield and kill Tony in revenge. But when he intercepted the convoy carrying the weapon, he encountered Black Widow again, with both of them recognizing each other immediately and discovering they both had enhancements that gave them abnormally long lifespans. The encounter resulted in a fight, with Bucky beating Natasha to take control of the shield.

Then came his confrontation with Tony, which ended with Bucky taking on Captain America’s mantle after being encouraged by his opponent through a letter from Roger. Bucky then started working with his former flame to take on powerful villains, and the two even rekindled their romance.

For a while, things seemed to be going well. It was revealed that Rogers hadn’t died at the end of Civil War, but his mind was trapped reliving events of his life. When he recovered, he took back his mantle from Bucky, with Bucky faking his death to resume covert missions as the Winter Soldier alongside the Black Widow.

Then, in Winter Soldier (2012), Bucky was targeted by Leo Novokov, a Red Room-trained assassin who saw him as a traitor to Russia. Novokov even captured Natasha and tampered with her memories, forcing Bucky and his allies to take on both of them. In the end, they successfully recovered Nat, with all her memories recovered except for those of Bucky.

Believing he had caused Nat nothing but trouble, Bucky chose to recuse himself from the situation and continue working without her, which led to the end of their romantic relationship.

Still, Bucky returned in numerous Black Widow’s solo stories, providing a watchful eye for her and helping out whenever she needed him. Though Nat later hinted that her memories of Bucky had returned after a confrontation with a telepath named the Weeping Lion, their romantic relationship remained complicated (via Marvel).

All this couldn’t make its way to the screens either, robbing fans of what romantic reality could have been for Natasha and Bucky. But now that the two stars are set to appear in The Batman 2 together, it feels like fans might finally be able to see that fantasy materialize.

What Other Role Could Scarlett Johansson Play in The Batman 2?

Gilda Gold, Harvey Dent’s wife, appears in the comics. | Credit: DC Comics.

Though she is highly rumored to play Gilda Gold, Scarlett Johansson could play a lot of other characters in the upcoming The Batman installment. This includes the likes of Martha Wayne, if the story dives into the various mysteries in the Wayne family history. She could also play Mary Grayson from Dick Grayson’s origin story as Robin.

But judging from her caliber and her status as a leading actress in Hollywood, it’s more likely that Johansson would slip into a significant role in this flick as well – a supporting one, probably, but one that would suit her talents and the tone of the ‘grounded’ Batman universe. 

This could include characters like Andrea Beaumont (aka Phantasm), who is a nuanced vigilante and a former fiancée of Bruce Wayne; Pamela Isley (aka Poison Ivy), who is a metahuman with full-blown powers; Vicki Vale, who is an intrepid reporter who becomes a love interest for Wayne; or Silver St. Cloud, who is a Gotham socialite with a connection to Gotham’s elite, which could tie into a potential “Court of Owls” storyline in The Batman 2.

Either way, as of now, all these character choices are mere speculations for Scarlett Johansson until official reports confirm who she is set to play. So, fans might not keep their hopes up too much just yet and wait for official announcements to know for sure.

Don’t you agree? What’s your take on this? Make sure to share with us in the comments section below!

The Batman: Part 2 is currently set to hit the screens on October 1, 2027.
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