Scarlett Johansson felt 'a little cagey' working on Marvel films

Scarlett Johansson felt "a little cagey" while working on Marvel blockbusters with large star-studded casts.

The Hollywood actress played Black Widow Natasha Romanoff in films including The Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War and her own solo spin-off Black Widow - and she's now admitted she often felt like she wasn't doing "engaging work" when she was part of an ensemble cast plus she couldn't get a hair cut or have her nails done during the filming period.

She told Interview magazine: "Some of the films that I did for Marvel engaged my character more than others.

"Like in Captain America: The Winter Soldier with Chris [Evans], we were really dynamic. In some of the other films, the cast was so enormous and there was so much plot to serve that you start to feel like you’re a device to move it along.

"And if you’re committed to five and a half months of that, it’s like: ‘Okay. I can’t paint my nails, I can’t get a haircut.’

"These sound like silly problems, but your identity is wrapped up in this job for a long time, and if you’re not doing engaging work as an actor, you feel a little cagey sometimes."

Scarlett was interviewing fellow actor David Harbour for the publication and he admitted he understood how she felt after spending almost a decade working on Netflix series 'Stranger Things'.

He explained: "It’s the same thing with this show. There’d be certain seasons where you feel like: 'I’m going to go in this different direction'.

"But as you say, a piece of your psyche is occupied with this group of people and this storyline. I don’t paint my nails, but I get that idea of: 'I can’t get a hair cut' or 'I can’t shave this freaking mustache'."

He added of bringing the show to a close: after five seasons: “When I started, I loved it so much.

"Buddies of mine who’d done TV shows for many years said: ‘By season three or four you’ll be running.’

"And I was like: ‘Never! I love all these guys so much.’ And then you get to a certain point where you’re like: ‘How much more story is there?’

"You’re having to play a lot of the same beat, and there’s a feeling where you’re like: ‘I want to take a risk. I want to do something that people haven’t seen me do before.’ So yeah, after 10 years, it’s like, ‘Okay'."