Marvel Comics has officially announced White Widow, a new four-issue limited series starring Yelena Belova.
Written by Sarah Gailey (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Eat the Rich) and illustrated by Alessandro Miracolo (Star Wars: Obi-Wan, Star Wars: Yoda), White Widow is slated to launch this November. David Marquez’s cover art for issue #1 features Yelena fighting her way past a group of what appear to be A.I.M. soldiers.
Marvel describes White Widow as a “groundbreaking new chapter in the life of one of Marvel’s most enigmatic antiheroes.” “Superspy. Rogue agent. Shadow of the Black Widow. Yelena Belova has been many things, but striking out as a hero in her own right is new to her,” the House of Ideas writes. “Now that she’s finally free to choose her own path, who will she become?”
“I am beyond exhilarated to launch White Widow into her own series!” Gailey told The Mary Sue. “Yelena Belova is an incredible character who deserves independence, community, and the opportunity to kill on her own terms. Getting the chance to work with this team at Marvel is a thrill. I can’t wait for the world to see what Alessandro and I have in store!”
Yelena Belova/White Widow is a Marvel star on the rise
Created by Devin Grayson and J.G. Jones, Yelena Belova first appeared in 1999’s Inhumans #5. Much like her idol-turned-enemy-turned-ally Natalia Romanova (aka Natasha Romanoff), Yelena was a member of the Black Widow Ops Program before deciding to carve her own path. Yelena adopted the White Widow moniker during writer Kelly Thompson’s run on Black Widow in 2021.
It was also in 2021 that Yelena joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Played by Florence Pugh, the character made her franchise debut in the film Black Widow. In the MCU, Yelena is the fake adoptive sister of fellow Black Widow agent Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). Pugh reprised her role as Yelena in the late-2021 Disney+ series Hawkeye. Her next turn as the character will be in the upcoming film Thunderbolts.
White Widow #1 goes on sale Nov. 1.
