Scarlett Johansson will appear in 'Captain America: Civil War'

BEIJING, Jan. 16 (UPI) -- Scarlett Johansson is confirmed to star in Captain America: Civil War.

The 30-year-old actress will reprise Black Widow for the sequel, with Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man and Sebastian Stan as the Winter Soldier. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo announced the news at a press conference Thursday in Beijing.

"We've been preparing for the movie since [Captain America: The Winter Soldier] debuted last year," the pair told reporters. "We're very happy how it's coming along ... Scarlett Johansson will be back, Winter Soldier will be back and Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man will also be joining us."

Captain America: Civil War will see Captain America (Chris Evans) and Iron Man face off over the Superhero Registration Act. Anthony Mackie, who portrayed Falcon in The Winter Soldier, declared the sequel will be "everything you can imagine" in an interview with WTTG Fox 5 this week.

Johansson first appeared as Black Widow in Iron Man 2, and returned for The Avengers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. She and Downey will star in Avengers: Age of Ultron in May, with Captain America: Civil War scheduled for release May 6, 2016.

Johansson last portrayed the title character in Luc Besson thriller Lucy. The actress will appear in new Coen brothers comedy Hail, Caesar!, and will star as Motoko Kusanagi in an adaptation of Masamune Shirow manga Ghost in the Shell.