‘The Marvels’ Director Nia DaCosta Talks About Her First Blockbuster Movie

There is a handful of Hollywood directors who gained recognition for their work on popular franchises, and Marvel Cinematic Universe is certainly one of those. Be honest; how many of you knew about the Russo brothers, James Gunn, Peyton Reed, or Jon Watts before they directed multiple MCU movies? However, when it comes to studio movies, people tend to forget that a producer is a person who’s pulling the strings, and directors are hired to do the job the way they are told.

A director is rarely allowed complete creative freedom in these franchises. Yes, there are some exceptions, like Sam Raimi’s work approach on ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ or Taika Waititi’s comedy style in the last two ‘Thor’ movies. Still, you will rarely find a director who is hired to do an MCU movie alone without any studio interference.

However, although the studio is restraining directors from doing everything as they please, one of the keys to MCU’s success is that the studio handles the entire narrative and storylines of the franchise. The ‘Star Wars’ sequel trilogy and DCEU could’ve learned a thing or two from that.

Kevin Feige praises Nia DaCosta as she talks about her first MCU movie.

Some directors who Marvel Studios hired were there for only one project, while some of them stayed for more. In which category Nia DaCosta falls, we have yet to find out. The studio first hired her to direct ‘The Marvels’ after Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, directors of the original ‘Captain Marvel’ movie, didn’t return for the sequel.

In her feature movie directorial debut, DaCosta directed 2018’s ‘Little Woods,’ and in 2021, she directed 2021’s ‘Candyman.’ This year’s ‘The Marvels’ is her third feature movie, and she also worked on all three of these movies as a writer. While speaking with Vanity Fair, DaCosta talked about her first blockbuster and Kevin Feige’s role in the movie’s development. Feige also expressed praise for DaCosta for her credibility to the job.

“People are like, ‘Oh, it’s a Marvel film. Cool, cool, cool,’ but I also have my name on it, so I want to be able to be proud of it too. […] The overarching narrative is secondary to the narrative of the individual film. It is a Kevin Feige production, it’s his movie. So I think you live in that reality, but I tried to go in with the knowledge that some of you is going to take a back seat.”

Nia DaCosta (via Vanity Fair)

“We were just very impressed with her indie cred and her nerd cred.”

Kevin Feige (via Vanity Fair)

‘The Marvels’ is a sequel to the original ‘Captain Marvel,’ but also a follow-up to Disney+ shows ‘WandaVision,’ ‘Ms. Marvel,’ and ‘Secret Invasion.’ The movie follows Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel as she finds out her powers are entangled with the powers of Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau. The trio assembles into a new team that will face off against Dar-Benn, one of the Accusers, played by Zawe Ashton.

‘The Marvels’ stars Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton, Park Seo-Joon, and Samuel L. Jackson. Directed by Nia DaCosta, the 33rd MCU movie opens in theaters on November 10, 2023.

Are you looking forward to ‘The Marvels’? What do you think is next for Brie Larson’s MCU character? Let us know in the comments.

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