Before Iman Vellani (Ms. Marvel) debuts her first Marvel Comics project, Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant, the 20-year-old superhero fan is making dreams come true on the set of The Marvels. The new film serves as a sequel to 2019’s box office blockbuster Captain Marvel, with Brie Larson returning as Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, and WandaVision‘s Teyonah Parris reprising her role as Monica Rambeau, aka Photon. Vellani’s Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, makes her big screen debut in the forthcoming film, with Kree, Flerkens, and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) along for the wild ride. Recently, Vellani, Larson, and Parris discussed The Marvels with Entertainment Weekly via Zoom for a cover story sharing new images and details about the film. The Marvels images give fans an outstanding look at the new adventure coming to theaters on November 10, 2023.
Nia DaCosta (Candyman) directs The Marvels from a script she wrote with Gene Colan and Elissa Karasik. When discussing DaCosta’s filming process, Vellani can’t help but gush about the process and opportunity of seeing professionals in their element. “She has a really calm vibe, too,” Vellani says about DaCosta. “These movies are not easy to make at all. There’s like a million, bajillion little moving pieces. She and Mary [Livanos] did such a great job to keep morale high. Even if there were days where they wanted to rip people’s heads off, they would never show it and never put their stress on anyone else.”
The Marvels introduces fresh faces to the MCU, including Parasite‘s Park Seo-joon, in a mysterious role, who Livanos says is an “ally to Carol,” and Zawe Ashton as the villainous Kree revolutionary Dar-Benn. Ashton had been waiting for a chance to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe when her agent called about joining The Marvels. She immediately accepted, leaped into stunt training, and tapped her fiancé Tom Hiddleston for advice about playing a villain in the MCU.
Ashton says Hiddleston replied, “What you put into Marvel, you get back. If you go into this with an open heart and a great work ethic and just want to provide an amazing experience for the fans, you’ll have an amazing experience on those sets.’ He really empowered me in that way.” Also, ask for plenty of zippers on your costume for more leisurely bathroom trips!
Another significant film star is Goose, Carol’s flerken cat companion! Primarily played by two feline actors named Nemo and Tango, Goose is joined by a flerken army in The Marvels. In case you forgot, Flerkens are a race of alien creatures resembling Earth cats in appearance and behavior. However, they reproduce by laying up to 117 eggs and possessing tentacles extending from their mouths. According to Marvel Fandom, their bodies also hold pocket realities, bubbles of space and time that exist in other worlds. “The crew was delighted whenever the kittens were around,” Livanos says. “It was like Christmas when we had our bigger kitten scenes. Everyone had their own favorite.” Unfortunately, Larson is highly allergic to cats and acts alongside a CGI feline co-star for her scenes.
Despite high stakes in almost any MCU tentpole, DaCosta keeps The Marvels light and fun. “It doesn’t have to be intense and heavy,” Larson says. “There’s a lot of humor. I think this movie’s very funny, and we laughed a lot while making it.”
With a couple of months to go and negotiations between the WGA, SAG-AFTRA, and the AMPTP ongoing, it remains to be seen if The Marvels will release on time. Here’s hoping things work out and the triple threat of DaCosta’s next film blows the box office to smithereens. Let us know what you think of The Marvels images below!