MCU Fan Theory Suggests Natasha Romanoff And Clint Barton Were On Opposite Sides In Budapest

A throwaway line in the original Avengers movie has spawned dozens of theories regarding Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner). During the final battle in New York, the two characters have a brief exchange about an event from their past that has only been addressed twice in the entire Infinity Saga.

“It’s like Budapest all over again,” Natasha says as she and Clint fire bullets and arrows respectively at the Chitauri.

“You and I remember Budapest very differently,” Clint quips back.

Fans have been begging for a Budapest movie since 2012, but the best they’ve gotten is a second mention of the city in Avengers: Endgame.

“We’re a long way from Budapest,” Clint says to Natasha as they venture off to Vormir on a spaceship.

A new fan theory on Reddit is suggesting what went down in the Hungarian capital, and it looks like the two were not on the same side. Redditor u/hootanahalf believes the two characters met for the first time in Budapest, and fans will remember their first meeting was not a good one. Natasha mentions to Loki in The Avengers that Clint was sent to kill her when they originally met, but he made a different call. She also hinted at their first meeting in Endgame after they landed on Vormir.

“I don’t judge people on their worst mistakes,” Natasha said.

“Maybe you should,” Clint responded.

“You didn’t,” she replied.

The theorist believes that Natasha did some bad things in the European capital where Clint was sent to take her out. However, he saw a different side to her and spared her, and she eventually turned good and subsequently joined S.H.I.E.L.D. Budapest might be the location of Natasha’s “worst mistake,” which Clint never judged her for.

The theory gained a lot of support on Reddit, with over 1,400 upvotes in less than a day. Dozens of comments piled up where MCU fans applauded the plot suggestion.

Many are hoping to get some more clarification on what went down in Budapest in the Black Widow solo movie, which is due out later this year. While the film is confirmed to take place between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Infinity War, it’s possible there is a flashback scene or two.

Others have suggested that Taskmaster, the big bad in Black Widow, is actually Hawkeye. This suggestion is a little fuzzy and is mostly based on the fact that the villain wields a bow and arrow just like Clint. Others believe that Clint and Natasha battled Taskmaster together in Budapest, which would mean the villain appeared at two different points in the MCU timeline.

MCU fanatics will have to wait until May 7 to see if there are any more revelations on the events that occurred in Budapest all those years ago.