In a recent book, Marvel executive Andy Park detailed how they changed how Black Widow appeared in Avengers: Infinity War.
Black Widow, one of the MCU’s sole prequels, plays a rarer role than other movies because it takes place before the events of the larger-scale Avengers movies that came before it.
With the help of knowledge from a recent book, the effects of this particular placement may now be seen more clearly.
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Retcon for Black Widow Explained
In Marvel’s Black Widow: The Art of the Movie, director of visual development Andy Park explains that the minor Easter egg of Natasha Romanoff’s garment in Avengers: Infinity War being identical to her sister Yelena Belova’s vest was not initially intended.
Now that followers are aware that the vest is actually Yelena’s, Park claimed to have “retroactively given that vest significance,” adding that “there’s love” in the garment:
“While working on “Black Widow,” we retroactively gave that vest significance by revealing that Yelena genuinely owns it. Your tears will moisten if you ever see Infinity War again because Natasha is donning her sister’s vest and there is love in that scene. We concept artists all tell stories, therefore that’s what we do.”
When the “tactical vest” was created for Infinity War, it didn’t represent anything specific besides what would make sense in the narrative:
“The Russo brothers didn’t want Natasha to have a whole new outfit when I first designed her for ‘Infinity War,” I said. They intended to modify her current Captain America: Civil War outfit by adding something to it. They loved the tactical vest idea I had, so that’s what got adopted.
Though it was initially intended to be a component of Natasha’s design, Park had the idea to [incorporate] the vest we see in Avengers: Infinity War when it came time to work on Black Widow years later:
“She has maintained a consistent aesthetic across her various public appearances, so much of it is playing with minutiae like different lines and materials. I created variants of her wearing nothing but a jacket and other items of casual attire, and it was at that point that I began to consider whether or not adding the vest from “Avengers: Infinity War” may be a smart idea.”
The vest “worked incredibly well with the white suit,” according to Park, so she decided to incorporate it into Yelena’s design.
“I made numerous iterations of Yelena’s snowsuit. I had experimented with making Natasha’s design include the vest from Avengers: Infinity War, but then I thought, what if it’s Yelena’s vest instead? It went pretty nicely with the white suit when I presented that concept and the designs I was experimenting with. Naturally, the vest then took off.”
In order to give what he designs “deeper meaning,” Park is thorough in his execution, taking care to add details like “a subtle black widow spider motif” in the lines of Natasha’s suit:
“Therefore, it’s not just a matter of asking, “What does it look like, how can I make it cool?” when I’m designing a suit. What is the significance of what she is wearing, you’re also wondering? The story I’m telling should be there, even if the spectator can’t always see it. Thus, once you tell it, it acquires a richer significance.”
Finally, Park acknowledged costume maker Jany Temime, praising her for “doing a tremendous job of taking these garments and making them real:”
“With these costumes, Jany Temime did an amazing job of giving them life. They were extremely form-fitting combat suits when I developed them. But based on her research into a Russian jumpsuit, she gave Yelena’s a distinctiveness by designing it more loose and out of a thinner cloth. Just so much more is added by Jany’s additions.”
A Vest with a Purpose
Marvel’s decision to use a deeper significance for Natasha’s vest in Infinity War retroactively demonstrates the studio’s readiness to draw from past works as it creates multi-project narratives for its characters.
Because there are so many distinct MCU productions, viewers might not recall small specifics like a waistcoat from one film. On second viewing, though, viewers will see the vest and, perhaps without even recognizing it, understand its significance.
As a result, fans are encouraged to rewatch previous movies because the vest’s use in a subsequent effort gave it significance in an earlier movie. What information would viewers have missed upon initial viewing?
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