Marvel's Black Widowjust got one step closer to emerging from perpetual pre-production purgatory.

The studio has reportedly set Cate Shortland, the Australian filmmaker known for dramas like Somersault, Lore, and Berlin Syndrome, to direct the standalone superhero adventure.

SEE ALSO:'Captain Marvel' hires 'Fortnite' composer Pinar Toprak, the first woman to score a Marvel film

Shortland beat out around seventy other candidates in the grueling search for the perfect director. She'll be the second female director behind a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie – joining Anna Boden, who's directing Captain Marvelwith Ryan Fleck.

The Scarlett Johnasson-starring Black Widowdoes not yet have a release date.

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The script was penned by Jac Schaeffer, writer of the upcoming women-centric reimagining of Dirty Rotten ScoundrelstitledNasty Women.

Not much is known about the plot of Black Widow, but it will reportedly explore the life of the former Russian spy prior to the events of the first Avengersmovie.

Shortland was reportedly chosen from a list of finalists that included Amma Asante (Belle), Maggie Betts (Novitiate), Melanie Laurent (Galveston), and Kimberly Peirce (Boys Don't Cry).

We can already feel the lady power emanating from Black Widow's long overdue debut as the lead hero.

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TopicsMarvel