Scarlett Johansson, the sexiest woman alive, according to Maxim and Esquire magazines, is playing the 31st sexiest woman in comics, according to the Comics Buyer's Guide. The former "thinking man's sex symbol," Johansson will play Black Widow in this April's "Avengers: Age Of Ultron" and "Captain America: Civil War," before flying solo in a "Black Widow" standalone film.

"Black Widow is a superhero, but she's also human. She's small, but she's strong. It's hard not to admire her." Johansson told W magazine. "She packs a big punch ...We all try to fight the forces of evil. Like Black Widow, you have to keep trying. The challenge is always there."

The Black Widow, aka Natalia "Natasha" Romanova, first showed up in the Marvel universe as a Russian spy. She was pitted against Iron Man until she fled the Iron Curtain and joined the spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D. Black Widow is also a member of the Avengers.

"I actually visited Pixar, hoping that they would use me for a cartoon," Johansson told W magazine. "They didn't. I was ripe for the picking! What happened? Now they have to give me a cartoon! I just called them out."

Director Joss Whedon will pit Johansson against Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth.

According to Wiki, the Black Widow's special abilities are slowed aging, enhanced immune system, abnormally superior athletic condition, extensive military, hand-to-hand combat, martial arts, and espionage training, hypnosis and enhanced psychological defenses. Sounds a lot like Scarlett Johansson, who played a nude alien seductress with hypnotic powers in last year's "Under The Skin."

Scarlett Johansson played the Black Widow in the films "Iron Man 2" in 2010 and Marvel's "The Avengers" in 2012.

"People were surprised that I wanted to play a comic book heroine," Johansson told W magazine. "But I loved Iron Man, and I met with Marvel to see what was possible. I had done my research, and the Black Widow character resonated with me. She is dark and has faced death so many times that she has a deep perspective on the value of life. In the sequel [to The Avengers], you learn more about the sadness in her past."

Scarlett Johansson made her film debut in the movie North in 1994. In 1996, she was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in "Manny & Lo." She got great notices for her roles in "The Horse Whisperer" from 1998 and "Ghost World" in  2001 before moving on to adult roles like her turn in "Girl with a Pearl Earring"  and Sofia Coppola's "Lost in Translation" which were both released in 2003. She was nominated for Golden Globe Awards for both films. Johansson won a BAFTA award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for "Lost in Translation."