When actors join the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they enter an all-consuming film world.
Most never level the Marvel bubble; when they do, they struggle to match the success. That’s probably why the film world was nervous when Florence Pugh joined Black Widow and was set to replace Scarlett Johansson. The actress recently spoke about what her friends in the indie film world were like upon this news.
Pugh describes the indie film community as “pissed off.” She tells Time Magazine more about the situation and how she wanted to honor her commitment to the arthouse world.
“They were like, ‘Great, now she’s gone forever,'” she explained. “And I’m like, ‘No, I’m working as hard as I used to work. I’ve always done back-to-back movies. It’s just people are watching them now. You just have to be a bit more organized with your schedule.'”
Pugh has stood by her stance, only appearing one other time in the MCU outside of 2021’s Black Widow. The actress had a small cameo role in the Disney+ series Hawkeye. Since then, she’s starred in films like The Wonder, Don’t Worry Darling, and A Good Person. She’ll next appear in two of this year’s biggest blockbusters: Oppenheimer & Dune: Part Two.
We’ll see Pugh again in the MCU as Yelena Belova in Thunderbolts, with a release date of July 26th, 2024.