Brie Larson The Captain Marvel
Brie Larson explains why she wasn’t quick to jump on the opportunity to board the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Captain Marvel, saying she was afraid it was going to “feel like a burden.” Set to debut as Carol Danvers in next year’s Captain Marvel, the Oscar-winner has been busy filming the Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck-directed movie. But while she seems to be enjoying the whole process of becoming the first female headlining hero of the MCU, Larson had serious reservations that the gig would hinder her from doing other things career-wise.
The Captain Marvel film was first announced way back in 2014 as part of MCU’s Phase 3, but Larson’s casting wasn’t officially announced until San Diego Comic-Con 2016 (although her involvement was already heavily rumored prior to that). The following year, more information came to light regarding the MCU’s first female superhero solo film, with the confirmation that the movie is set in the ’90s and sees Carol Danvers take on the Skrulls. Thanks to the movie’s historical setting, Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury, Clark Gregg’s Phil Coulson, and Lee Pace’s Ronin the Accuser will all appear in the film.
Speaking with the Associated Press while attending the Women In Film Crystal + Lucy Awards, Larson candidly talked about her initial doubts about joining the MCU as Captain Marvel. One of her biggest reservations was how the gig could ultimately change her life for the better and for worse. The actress also had to consider how her big career move would impact her friends and family:
“There’s a lot about it that felt like a big decision and it’s not just a big decision for myself, it’s a big decision for my family and my partner and for my friends. It’s a big change for everybody and I wasn’t sure if it was the right thing for me.”
“I never want to do, make artistic decisions that will feel like a burden or that would take me away from the parts of my life that I find fulfilling so Marvel was super patient and allowed me a lot of time to think it over and then once I felt like I had made the right decision which was doing it I got both feet in and I’m really happy.”
Larson wasn’t the only one to be skeptical of joining an established franchise like the MCU, given the multi-film contract it involves. Chris Evans has been open about turning down Marvel Studios for his Captain America role a few times before he signed on. Similar to Larson’s reasoning, Evans was also afraid of committing to years of his career to playing one role, especially if it wasn’t well-received like his previous superhero stint in Fox’s 2005 Fantastic Four film (where he played Johnny Storm). Now, it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing the Star Spangled Avenger than the actor. Chances are, after several years (maybe even just after her debut film), Larson be in the same boat; after all, she has lots of fans already.
Shortly after her debut in Captain Marvel, Larson’s Danvers will officially be joining the rest of the MCU in Avengers 4. It’s still unclear what role she’ll play in Earth’s Mightiest Heroes’ final bout against Thanos. But considering that she’s able to move planets, not to mention her connection with the Quantum Realm (which could allow time-travel in the franchise), fans expect that she’s going to be a huge factor in ultimately defeating the Mad Titan.
