Brie Larson powering up as Captain Marvel in Captain Marvel. Photo courtesy of Marvel, screenshot by Linda Maleh.
After 20 movies and 11 years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally set to debut its first solo female-led film (Ant-Man and the Wasp was its first male-female co-led film). Captain Marvel premiers March 8, and will be a game-changer for Marvel. For one thing, she’s supposed to be key to helping the Avengers beat Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. For another, Marvel has announced that Captain Marvel will be the most powerful hero in the MCU to date – for reference, she has powers on a scale akin to DC’s Superman. More than anything though, it’s a win for representation, and a long time coming.
Who is Captain Marvel? I’ll tell you who she’s not. She’s not the DC character of the same name, who in recent years has been rebranded as Shazam (who has his own movie coming out April 5). Who she is, is a US air-force pilot named Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) who got lost in space, and went through a DNA changing process that made her part Kree – an alien race of “nobel warrior heroes,” as she says in the trailer. When she falls to Earth, she starts having memories of her life before her transformation. She meets SHIELD agents, a young Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) – this film takes place in the 90’s and uses de-aging technology – and she works with them to stop the Skrulls, another alien race that is invading Earth, and has an ongoing war with the Kree.
Brie Larson as US air-force pilot Carol Danvers in Captain Marvel. Photo courtesy of Marvel, screenshot by Linda Maleh.
So you said she’s going to be the most powerful hero in the MCU, so what are her powers? I’m glad you asked. She can fly, she has super strength, and she can shoot energy blasts from her hands.
How does she fit into Avengers: Endgame? At the end of Avengers: Infinity War, Nick Fury pages someone right before he turns into dust. Captain Marvel’s symbol appears on the pager, so we know he was calling her in to help, supposedly she’s been in space all this time.
Is everyone going to see this movie? Yes. The film’s pre-sale tickets have already surpassed many Marvel and DC blockbusters, and is estimated to open at 100M+ domestically. So get pumped, and buy your tickets, because Captain Marvel is coming!
