Scarlett Express

It's difficult to look beyond Scarlett Johansson's freakishly good looks (Esquire named her the Sexiest Woman Alive in 2006, and Woody Allen compares her to Marilyn Monroe), but in her new role as the butt-kicking Black Widow in The Avengers, this 27-year-old Hollywood A-lister is very happy not to be playing the object of male infatuation. 'There's no romance,' she says happily; 'I spend the whole film kicking the sh*t out of people.'

Since her divorce from actor Ryan Reynolds, the diminutive, curvy actress has elected to remain single, despite constant rumours to the contrary. She admits that she wasn't ready to do the hard work marriage requires. And being on her own (except for Maggie, her Chihuahua) has been an important learning experience.

On page 70 of the February edition of COSMOPOLITAN you can read more about Scarlett's transition from 'the pretty girl' to leading roles in Iron Man 2, Under The Skin and We Bought a Zoo and how she is finally getting to flex her acting muscles. We say, go girl!

Author: Susan Hayden