Scarlett Johansson is an actor whose career seems to perpetually flourish. She’s always performing new roles in new films, and she’s one whose films always receive more attention because she’s in them. Her transformation into the actor she is today has been an especially interesting one due to the “Black Widow” actor not being on social media. Even though fans haven’t had this direct access to her, the actor has proved through her roles that innate talent can take you a long way.
Johansson is perhaps best known as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) as she’s portrayed this character for over a decade. She’s been in several blockbuster MCU films, including the long-awaited solo film, “Black Widow.”
Johansson, whose character is dead in the Marvel world as of 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” describes her solo film as perfectly timed (via The Los Angeles Times). Preceding these two films are her MCU appearances in “Iron Man 2,” “The Avengers,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Captain America: Civil War,” and “Avengers: Infinity War” (via IMDb).
These three movies show Scarlett Johansson's emotional prowess
While Scarlett Johansson has been occupied as Black Widow for quite some time, she’s also expanded her career outside of the MCU. Some of these films went on to achieve critical success, and others remained cult favorites. In either case, Johansson’s performances are typically stellar.
Some of Johansson’s must-see films include 2013’s “Under the Skin,” 2003’s “Lost in Translation,” and 2019’s “Marriage Story.” Per Vulture, in all of these roles, Johansson challenges herself to act in ways she’s never had to before. “I thought it would be incredibly challenging to play a character that’s free of judgment, that has no relationship to any emotion I could relate to,” the actor said of taking on “Under the Skin.”
Where “Under the Skin” lets Johansson play with emotions in really interesting ways, “Lost in Translation” allows her to see the world in new lights. This film sees her character, Charlotte, watching her husband’s career flourish while she’s stuck with him in Japan, a country with which she’s not as familiar, with her own dreams seemingly sidelined. This role is more understated than her “Under the Skin” role but it proves that she can explore the subtlety of acting in really brilliant ways.
Then, there’s Netflix’s “Marriage Story,” which sees Johansson’s character really struggle with identity and marriage in a unique way. The characters are so fleshed out that “there are no bad guys in this movie,” according to Vulture, and it’s this complexity of character and story that make it a must-see.
These roles proved that Scarlett Johansson's voiceover work is just as powerful as her live action work
Scarlett Johansson has also proved that she can deliver powerful performances in unique scenarios. For instance, some of her best roles include her voiceover work in films such as 2013’s “Her” and 2004’s “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie” (via Cinema Blend). The former sees Johansson voicing a computer program comparable to what we know as Siri or Alexa, and the film toggles with the idea of love and corporeality. The program’s owner begins to catch feelings with Johansson’s noncorporeal character, and Cinema Blend notes that the chemistry shared between the two actors despite never physically being in the same room is exquisite.
Then, there’s the “SpongeBob” movie. You may not think of animated films when you think of Johansson, but this film proved early on that the actor can really do it all. Here, she portrays Mindy, King Neptune’s daughter, and she provides a well-rounded voice to the character that really brings her to life. She delivers one of the most mature performances in the film despite playing a teenager, delivering humor, attitude, campiness, and more all in one role. She would even later go on to provide voice work for Kaa in the 2016 “The Jungle Book” remake.
At the end of the day, voiceover roles may not be what Johansson is known for, but they’re some of her best work nonetheless, and these are films of hers you really should watch.
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