Scarlett Johansson

Cast of ‘The Avengers,” assemble! You have been summoned to the  Oscars. Members of “The Avengers” cast including Robert Downey Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Evans, Jeremy Renner and Mark Ruffalo will gather together to present at the Hollywood awards show, the show’s producers announced Wednesday. But the super group of actors will not be complete: Scarlett Johansson is currently busy with her Broadway show “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” a spokeswoman from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences told The Times. Chris Hemsworth, who stars in the film  ”Thor: The Dark World,” set to come out in November, also will not be part of the group. Although none of “The Avengers” actors is up for an Oscar this year, many of them have been nominees in the past. Downey was nominated in 1993 for his lead […]

The news is grim — a team member has gone down, the worst is feared — and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans) exchange pensive looks while, all around them, the agents of a super-spy agency called S.H.I.E.L.D. tend to their duties as an off-planet enemy force threatens the entire planet. The scene, being filmed on an elevated set, was watched from a safe — and ironic — distance by Joss Whedon. “You know, you shouldn’t worry too much,” the director and co-writer of “The Avengers” reassured a visitor to the New Mexico set. “This kind of stuff happens here almost every day in the Marvel universe.” It does feel sometimes like Hollywood has become a digital factory dedicated to cosmic dangers, costumed heroes and CG magic but “The Avengers” is a special case even in this summer […]

A new clip from “The Avengers” shines a spotlight on Scarlett Johansson –  as well as writer-director Joss Whedon’s trademark wit. The 43-second clip, released one month before the film hits theaters on May 4, represents the first “Avengers” footage revealed by Marvel since the trailer. The film assembles a dream team of mighty heroes, including Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). The new scene shows Johansson as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. the Black Widow, helplessly tied to a chair, surrounded by a military man and two goons. Well, maybe “helplessly” isn’t quite the right word. “I’m in the middle of an interrogation,” she says, with a trace of exasperation, into a phone propped on her shoulder. “This moron is giving me everything.” On the other end of the phone is her colleague, Agent Phil Coulson […]

It’s a big day in the Marvel Universe — principal photography is now underway in Albuquerque, N.M., on “The Avengers,” the film that will bring together the superheroes from four separate film franchises and, perhaps, launch a few new ones. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans) and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo stepping in for the banished Edward Norton) will be joined by Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson, reprising her slinky S.H.I.E.L.D. spy role from “Iron Man 2“) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner, who makes a cameo with his bows and arrows in “Thor,” which opens May 6) as well as Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg), the representatives of S.H.I.E.L.D., the secret-ops government agency that appears to be the glue holding much of the upcoming mythology in place. As expected, Tom Hiddleston from “Thor” will be the […]

When most movie stars arrive at a restaurant for a lunch interview they usually toss their Mercedes keys to a valet and ask if they can get a table that is both secluded but also clearly visible from every corner of the dining room. On a recent gray afternoon, though, Ryan Reynolds arrived at a scruffy Hollywood diner with a motorcycle helmet under his tattooed arm and sat down at the brown leather booth closest to the door. When he ordered a Cobb salad the waitress didn’t look up from her pad. ”You want it with Balsamic, like the last time?” “Yeah,” he said, “Easy on the cheese. And, unlike my wife, I want the bacon.” Reynolds clearly enjoys the aura of the average Joe, even if his bacon-eschewing wife happens to be Scarlett Johansson and he himself is ramping up to a new level of […]

“IRON MAN 2″ COUNTDOWN: 4 DAYS Tony Stark breaks all the rules (even the one that says superheroes must keep a secret identity), and he always seems to come out on top — that’s why we love him. But now comes “Iron Man 2,” a film about secret dangers, the sins of the father and the nasty price of modern celebrity. The movie lands Wednesday in the U.S., and until then, we’ll have behind-the-scenes scoops every day on the summer’s most anticipated film. “Iron Man 2″ ruled overseas with a $100-million opening weekend but how will it fare when it arrives stateside this week? A look at some of the reviews, both cruel and kind… ANTHONY LANE, THE NEW YORKER: If necessary, Downey is happy to charm himself, should there be no one else around to play with, but “Iron Man […]

“IRON MAN 2″ COUNTDOWN: 8 DAYS Tony Stark breaks all the rules (even the one that says superheroes must keep a secret identity), and he always seems to come out on top — that’s why we love him. But now comes “Iron Man 2,” a film about secret dangers, the sins of the father and the nasty price of modern celebrity. The movie lands May 7 in the U.S., and every day until then, we’ll have behind-the-scenes scoops on the summer’s most anticipated film. More videos from the stars of “Iron Man 2,” including an oddly sedate Robert Downey Jr.   – Geoff Boucher RECENT AND RELATED: “IM2″ premiere, like real life but different “Iron Man 2″ finds its past (and Marvel’s future) in Stark Expo Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko — from Russia with hate “Iron Man 2″ won’t be a […]

“IRON MAN 2″ COUNTDOWN: 9 DAYS Tony Stark breaks all the rules (even the one that says superheroes must keep a secret identity), and he always seems to come out on top — that’s why we love him. But now comes “Iron Man 2,” a film about secret dangers, the sins of the father and the nasty price of modern celebrity. The movie lands May 7 in the U.S., and every day until then, we’ll have behind-the-scenes scoops on the summer’s most anticipated film. The cast of “Iron Man 2” has a lot of new faces and here’s video interviews with two of those newcomers, Scarlett Johansson and Don Cheadle.   – Geoff Boucher RECENT AND RELATED: “IM2″ premiere, like real life but different VIDEO: Robert Downey Jr. and more at the ‘Iron Man 2′ premiere “Iron Man 2″ finds its past (and Marvel’s […]