After years in development and unfortunate delays, Black Widow — the first film in the MCU’s Phase Four — has seen the light of day. While there has now been an unfortunate lawsuit tied to the film's release, Black Widow itself is still an enjoyable, action-packed superhero story. The film finds Natasha Romanoff dealing with her past, as she teams up with her adoptive sister, Yelena, in order to take down the Red Room and the entire Widow program.
While Marvel fans had a long wait for Black Widow to hit the big (and small) screen, they may now be looking for some other great movies to follow up their journey with Natasha. For any fans of spy thrillers, action flicks, or other Marvel properties, any of these films would make a great companion piece to Black Widow.
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First up on this list is what director Cate Shortland cites as the most similar Marvel film to Black Widow. The second Captain America in the trilogy finds Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers adjusting to life in the modern era while facing the idea that S.H.I.E.L.D may not be all that he thought it would be.
With the help of Black Widow and The Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Captain America must figure out the mystery of who the enigmatic assassin is that goes by the name The Winter Soldier, and why he looks so familiar to him. Full of action, spy thriller elements, and more Black Widow, The Winter Soldier is a perfect follow-up to Black Widow while introducing important MCU characters.
This classy, female-led action thriller stars Charlize Theron as Lorraine, an undercover MI6 agent who is sent to Berlin at the height of the Cold War. With the help of David (James McAvoy), she must navigate the war-torn city for a list of double agents. But, like any good thriller, things aren’t exactly as they seem.
Complete with a killer soundtrack and beautiful cinematography, Atomic Blonde is Charlize Theron at best, kicking butt and looking way too good doing it. A sequel is also in development at Netflix!
Another Marvel film makes the list. After the events of Captain America: Civil War, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is trying to balance his superhero persona Ant-Man with being a father when a new mission comes his way. Lang must fight alongside Hope Van Dyne, also known as The Wasp (Evangeline Lily), to defeat Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and learn the origins of their powers.
Ant-Man and The Wasp also is the introduction of The Quantum Realm, which will play a major part in the MCU to come. The film has the added comedy of an unlikely duo forced to work together and female superhero fight scenes to spare. And what’s a better way to prepare for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania?
Described at first as a female-led John Wick, Gunpowder Milkshake is an action revenge film with a feminist twist. It follows Sam (Karen Gillan), a young assassin working for The Firm, an organization with far-reaching hands. When a job goes wrong and an eight-year-old girl is in danger, Sam betrays The Firm.
Now on the run, Sam must team up with a group of gun-toting librarians (made up by action legends like Michelle Yeoh) and her estranged hitwoman mother, Scarlet (Game of Thrones' Lena Headey) to stay alive and take back what's rightfully theirs. Highly stylized and full of amazing costumes, Gunpowder Milkshake is action-packed and has a surprisingly heartwarming story of motherhood and dealing with one’s past.
The sixth film in the Mission Impossible series is iconic for more reasons than just a sweet parachute stunt. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team are sent to Berlin to intercept three cores of plutonium before they fall into the hands of The Apostles, a reiteration of one of Hunt’s fiercest enemies. When a miscommunication lets the cores get away, Ethan will do anything to get them back.
Fallout separates itself from the previous films with its addition of CIA agent August Walker, played by Geralt of Rivia himself, Henry Cavill. Cavill’s role combined with Simon Pegg returning as Benji makes the film much more collaborative and even adds for a few comedic moments. Besides a great script, Fallout is one of the most well-shot action films in the last few years.
The final entry on this list is a thriller from the director of science-fiction classic The Fifth Element, Luc Besson, and the Black Widow herself, Scarlett Johansson. Johansson stars as the titular Lucy, a young woman who gets caught in a nightmare situation — she has been captured and is now a drug mule for powerful new medicine.
When the bag inside her starts to leak, the drug’s true powers are released, causing Lucy to access the full potential of her mind. With unmatched combat and intelligence, Lucy wants to take her captors down by any means necessary. The film has interesting conversations about the limits of the human mind and even has the iconic Morgan Freeman in a supporting role.
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