As Marvel's first on-screen female superhero, Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow plays a significant part in across the earlier phases of the MCU. She is presented as undeniably powerful and skilled but her portrayal was also inherently sexualised to appeal to male audiences, with her low cut leather jumpsuits and perfect make-up. There was always some form of romantic tension bubbling between Black Widow and another one of the Avengers, whether that be Chris Evans’ Captain America or Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk, and no real screen time was dedicated to fleshing out female friendships or successfully exploring the vulnerabilities even female superheroes face. That’s not to say her character wasn’t beloved by many - she was, myself included - but at the point where all of Black Widow’s male counterparts were having their own origin story films released, her push to the sidelines felt especially disappointing and lacking.
Despite the world of the MCU having been established for nearly nine years by 2017, DC beat the opposing studio to the female-led superhero film chase with the release of Wonder Woman, directed by Patty Jenkins. Though the competition wasn’t significant, the film did become the best performing female-led superhero movie ever released for a period of time. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman was presented as beautiful, though not in a sexualising manner, and whilst it doesn’t necessarily present itself as an overtly feminist narrative, having Wonder Woman in the hero position - and Chris Pine’s Steve Trevor as the more classical damsel role - felt like a significant step forward in normalising women in the leading role position. Wonder Woman was also proof that in order to make good female superhero movies, the involvement of female filmmakers was deeply necessary (especially when you look at Wonder Woman’s subsequent weaker characterisation in Zach Snyder’s Justice League).
The women in Black Panther are very much presented as the brains and the brawn behind Wakanda’s success...
Switching back to the MCU, the release of Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther in 2018, though it was a male-led superhero film, featured some of the MCU’s most powerful intersectional female representation to date. In central roles were the significantly skilled all-female Dora Milage tribe, led by Danai Gurira’s Okoye, and the sister of Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther, Letita Wright’s Shuri, who is presented as supremely intelligent when it comes to all things technology, even having the ability to build Black Panther’s super-powered suit. The women in Black Panther are very much presented as the brains and the brawn behind Wakanda’s success, but in a manner that is natural as opposed to overstated or performative - and a huge improvement when compared to Black Widow’s weaker characterisation. Following the tragic passing of Boseman, Black Panther 2 became a female-led superhero film of sorts as it saw Shuri take up the mantle of the titular hero and she will reprise this role in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday.
Evidently spurred on by the positive reception of Wonder Woman, the MCU released Captain Marvel in 2019, starring Brie Larson as the titular superhero. Although at times a bit heavy handed in its girl power messaging, the broadly negative audience reception of this film appeared to be a reflection of sexist attitudes at the time as opposed to a critique of the film itself which was a promising start for the character of Captain Marvel, as well as being a good foot forward in terms of female representation in the MCU. She was portrayed - notably by the involvement of the MCU’s first female director - as immensely powerful in her own right, both before she gained her powers as a pilot and afterwards, with her character going onto be essential to defeating Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. The film also rooted itself in platonic and female friendships as opposed to pursuing any kind of love interest for the character, which was a refreshing take from the MCU at the time.
As an individual character, this sort of independent treatment disappointingly wasn’t granted to Black Widow until after her shocking death in Avengers: Endgame, which then came with the release of a prequel Black Widow film in 2021. The movie delves into Natasha’s past, finally at the hands of a female director in the form of Cate Shortland, and centres on her relationship with her previously unknown about sister, Yelena, played by Florence Pugh. Whilst it was rightfully thought of by many to be too little too late in terms of the earlier filmmaking slights Natasha’s character had received, the decision to revolve the film around the bond of sisterhood which they share was a step forward in terms of female representation in the MCU. It was also essential to passing the torch down to Yelena as a key next generation female superhero who is overall granted much more autonomy, development and respect than Natasha was.
The evolution of female superheroes within the MCU would not be complete without mentioning Kamala Khan aka Ms Marvel, the MCU’s first Muslim superhero, who was initially introduced in her own underrated TV show in 2022 before moving onto being one third of the main cast of The Marvels alongside Captain Marvel and Monica Rambeau, portrayed by Teyonah Parris. The Marvels may have underperformed at the box office but it being an entirely female superhero-led movie cannot be undermined, as well as it being the MCU’s first film with a Black female director, Nia DaCosta. Through the TV show Agatha All Along in 2024, the MCU also debuted their first explicitly detailed lesbian romance, with a central plot line being the exploration of the romantic tension between Kathryn Hahn’s Agatha and Aubrey Plaza’s Rio. It was a necessary step forward for the MCU in terms of displaying LGBT+ romance, especially between two super-powered female characters - but whether it makes its way onto the big screen is yet to seen.
...it does so in a way that does not diminish her own power as a hero and also maintains the non-sexualised depiction...
In 2025 alone, we had two releases which featured some of the best MCU female representation to date in Thunderbolts and Fantastic Four: First Steps. Florence Pugh’s Yelena leads the star-studded cast and is presented as both a deeply human but also ruthlessly powerful character. The film doesn’t shy away from darker themes regarding mental health, especially in terms of Yelena’s struggle with grief and depression, but it does so in a way that does not diminish her own power as a hero and also maintains the non-sexualised depiction of Yelena in terms of costuming which Black Widow sadly did not receive until later on in the MCU. In terms of Mrs Fantastic, her portrayal as both a mother and a very powerful superhero in her own right is deeply empowering, as we don’t have to see her sacrifice either aspect of her character in order to maintain both. Likewise, her relationship with Mr Fantastic is one built on an equal respect and solidarity, without any significant power imbalance. With both Yelena and Mrs Fantastic’s characters progressing into Avengers: Doomsday, I hope positive female superhero representation continues in such a manner.
Whilst the DCEU has been fairly quiet in recent years in terms of further female-led superhero movies (other than the female directed Birds of Prey movie, starring Margot Robbie as a much less sexualised Harley Quinn than we saw in The Suicide Squad), June 2026 will see the release of the Supergirl movie, headed up by Millie Alcock and directed by Craig Gillespie. Her brief introduction in James Gunn’s Superman film promised her to be an interesting character to say the least and should hopefully be another promising feature for female representation in the DCEU.
So, what does this evolution of female superheroes tell us, then? Well, if audience responses to female-led superhero films tell us anything, especially ones with feminist messagings, it is that the role reversal of women doing the saving is not what traditional male superhero genre audiences want to see - but that does not make the representation any less important, nor has it thankfully appeared to deter filmmakers from beginning to broach more diverse narratives. Everyone deserves to see themselves represented on the big screen, especially in a genre which depicts as much strength, resilience and agency as superhero movies. The more diverse filmmakers continue to break through the echo chamber of sexist critique, the better served the genre will be in terms of continuing to produce female superheroes with a respect equal to their male counterparts in both power and strength.