Brie Larson on why She’s Taking on the role of Captain Marvel

We were very excited when he heard that Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck would be directing Captain Marvel. The two young directors had done stellar work on Half Nelson and Mississippi Grind, as well as on the small screen on The Affair and Billions. In this piece we wrote about them (we interviewed them about Mississippi Grind), we touched upon how tricky it will be to take a very complicated, very powerful character like Captain Marvel and weave her into the very large, very complex Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The key to doing this will, of course, fall on the directors, the screenwriters Meg LeFauve and Nicole Perlman, and, most of all on star Brie Larson. Having already won an Oscar for her performance in Room, and then proven her action chops in Kong: Skull Island, on paper Larson was already a fantastic person to take on the role. What’s key, however, is how closely she identifies with Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, and it was this identification that led Larson to the role. Here’s what she had to say to Vanity Fair:

“It took me a really long time. I had to sit with myself, think about my life and what I want out of it. Ultimately, I couldn’t deny the fact that this movie is everything I care about, everything that’s progressive and important and meaningful, and a symbol I wished I would’ve had growing up. I really, really feel like it’s worth it if it can bring understanding and confidence to young women—I’ll do it.”

“[Marvel has] been very open to hearing my thoughts and my take on it, which has been great. I think that’s why they cast me: I have a lot of similarities to this character and they want me to bring that into the movie.”

Marvel President Kevin Feige felt that he had absolutely the right woman for the role:

“Captain Marvel has powers that far surpass many of her heroic counterparts, and in order to bring this superhero to life and make her relatable and disarming we needed an actress with both range and humanity. So, like the best of our leading characters who have brought the Marvel Universe to life, Brie possesses the depth and energy that can fuse firepower, guts, and a great story.”

Captain Marvel hits theaters on March 8, 2019.