There are strong female heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, from founding Avenger Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and the mighty Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) to the recently winged Wasp, both Janet and Hope van Dyne. But none of these ladies have held down their own solo adventure, making Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) officially the first once Captain Marvel opens in theaters in 2019. However, when Larson was asked about the significance of this event on the set of her movie, she explained why she doesn't want that to be as big of a deal as people are making it out to be. Larson told CinemaBlend:
I'm kind of over the, like, 'first female blah, blah, blah.' And like, 'Wow, maybe women can actually do the same things that dudes can do. Like, what a crazy concept.' You know what I mean? I feel like the more we talk about it, the more we perpetuate the myth that it's an impossible task. It's like, no. If it wasn't like that before, it's because it was wrong. That was just wrong. Now we're just doing what's natural.
Captain Marvel doesn't fit into any clichéd mode of what a female character in a superhero movie should be. In the past, female characters were often supporting roles, or worse, damsels in distress that needed saving from a "big, strong man."
That's no longer the case in the modern era of blockbusters, and couldn't be further from the case with Carol. The former fighter pilot has a mix of human and alien DNA in her makeup, and she is blessed with all sorts of powers, most of which were on full display in the latest Captain Marvel trailer, which just dropped:
The more that Brie Larson reflected on her role as the first hero to lead a solo Marvel adventure story, the actress thought about how the picture might be received by female audiences. But she quickly clarified, to the journalists on the set that day:
I feel really firmly that art is made to be enjoyed and interpreted, and you get what you need out of it. My favorite books, I've read multiple times in my life, and they mean something totally different to me every time I read them. Art isn't made to be processed and labeled and organized in the way that we do it now. I even have a hard time with the idea of a genre, and that we place value based off of like, 'Well, it's really good for this kind of movie.' What does that even mean? I don't understand it. It'll be what it is, and I think there's going to be a lot there for people to digest and feel. And hopefully it will be the movie that you want to revisit again and again and as life goes on it will have more to it. I just want to make art that lasts. I want to make art that you grow with.
So far, Marvel Studios has made pop art, with which a generation of fans will continue to grow. And in March, Brie Larson gets to imprint her personal stamp on the MCU.
See how Captain Marvel turned out when the movie opens in theaters on March 8, 2019. Stay tuned, because we will have plenty more from the set of the latest Marvel movie on the site!
