Why Brie Larson is a Great Choice for Captain Marvel
It was just announced yesterday, courtesy of Variety, that Brie Larson has become the frontrunner for the first female-led superhero film under the Marvel Studios banner. She will be portraying Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel. While I personally have never been a comic-book geek and basically know the origins and powers of the different superheroes thanks to the films and television shows, as far as I was concerned, getting anybody with talent to play this character was my top concern, and not so much the hair color or muscle or physique of the actresses who were in contention. So for me, Academy Award winner Brie Larson was someone who passed my mind a few months ago when Marvel Studios forecasted casting announcements for Captain Marvel coming soon, and when she did, I found it hard to pass her up for anybody else. Not only has she been recognizably wonderful in films like 21 Jump Street (2012), The Spectacular Now (2013) and was the most entertaining part of The Gambler (2014), but after her amazing chemistry with Amy Schumer in Trainwreck (2015) and her much-deserved accolade hogging for Room (2015), it would have seemed that nobody else could do it better. That being said, there are already some out there who are disappointed and upset with her being the top pick for the moment. Remember until we hear it officially from Marvel or see her pop up in a film, it isn’t confirmed that she is portraying Carol Danvers. Already I’ve found some closed-minded statements from online parties unknown to me personally, but who are trying to make some noise in getting someone else tapped for the role and to get rid of Larson. Let’s take a look.
Emily Blunt is a better choice-
Okay, I’m not gonna lie. Emily Blunt is a very gifted, beautiful, and worthy choice for a Captain Marvel or other superheroine character. You can point to roles like Sicario (2015) or Edge of Tomorrow (2014) that showcased her ability to hold her own against the likes of Benicio Del Toro and Tom Cruise. No doubt she can. The thing is, however, that for the most part Marvel Studios is looking for younger actors and actresses to take on newer characters. Look at Tom Holland, who just turned 20, and who will likely be playing Spider-Man for well over a decade. Benedict Cumberbatch, portraying Doctor Strange this November, isn’t necessarily supposed to be an old guy, and Benedict can play him for a while, too. While Emily Blunt isn’t old, by any means, at 33, Larson is 26 and while it may seem that 7 years isn’t that big a deal, to the personnel who are trying to map out the next decade of films, even a difference of three or four years can mean making two films with one character or only one. Plus, Emily Blunt has just been signed for the sequel (?) to Mary Poppins, set for a Christmas 2018 release date. With the Captain Marvel movie slatted for March of 2019, there would have to be a lot of re-scheduling at this point to try and fit her into both roles.
Larson isn’t pretty enough-
Who said this? Okay, maybe not all of us are attracted to the same actors and actresses the same way, but to me the level of attractiveness or “hotness” of a star in the looks department should have absolutely zero affect on who plays what roles. We’ve seen dozens of times before that a little makeup can make even the most attractive stars look like a 0/10. So even if the “ugliest” actress is supposed to beautify herself in a movie, makeup can fix it. It’s silly to have to stand back and judge people only on their looks to see if they can or cannot portray a character. If I was asked, though, if I thought Larson was pretty enough to play the role, my answer would be yes, of course, but I’m a sucker for blondes, so maybe I’m not the person to ask.
Larson isn’t the right body type-
So Captain Marvel is a superheroine, the first that Marvel will bring to the table as the lead of the film. We see other actors in the universe like Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans and Chris Pratt (lots of Chris) and Jeremy Renner and the list goes on muscle-up for roles. Evidently there are some people out there who only think that actors can bulk up and muscle up before they are cast. These people need a reality check. Clearly if Marvel Studios or the unannounced director or whoever think that Brie Larson, or any other performer, for that matter, needs more muscle for the role, they can have him or her work with trainers to get them ready for the role. Hateful comments about certain actors being too fat or too skinny for roles (Larson has sadly been included in this) aren’t helping this. Believe you me, the powers of Marvel Studios will help each director achieve their vision of the characters fitness-wise and very few things can prevent that from happening.
Larson should pass on the role because of her Oscar win-
Okay, these types of comments just make me laugh. Let’s take a look at the cast of the previous Marvel film, Captain America: Civil War (2016): Chris Evans, Robert Downey, Jr., Scarlett Johannson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Renner, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Tom Holland, William Hurt, Daniel Bruhl, Martin Freeman, and Marisa Tomei. Between these actors, they have been nominated for a combined 12 Oscars and 24 Golden Globes. Plus the upcoming Doctor Strange movie has Oscar nominated cast members Benedict Cumberbatch, Rachel McAdams and Chiwetel Ejiofor and Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton. What rule in Hollywood forbids Oscar winners and nominees appearing in big-budget films? Hell, Larson is done filming Kong: Skull Island, set for release next year, and no one had a thing to say against her being in that. Sure, people point to examples like Matthew McConaughey in Interstellar (2014) and Christoph Waltz in The Green Hornet (2011) as bad choices moving forward from their Oscar wins, but so what? They did the movie. Did these actors’ careers become dead in the water? McConaughey has Free State of Jones due out this month and other projects in the works and Waltz has been in many projects since Green Hornet. Don’t worry about her longevity. If she had lost the Oscar, she wouldn’t automatically be taken off other projects. She’s a talented actress and she’ll be around for a long time.
I know that not every person is in love with every casting choice, but with this one, I find it hard to legitimately criticize Larson as Captain Marvel. Maybe I’m overlooking some legitimate critiques, but the ones I mentioned above I find to have no pre-judgment or affect on Larson or her performance. And let me repeat: until we see her in a film or the announcement comes directly from Marvel Studios, Larson is not confirmed for the role. If she steps down or someone else is cast I won’t raise too big a fit, and if she is cast, I’ll be happy. I guess that’s the bottom line: get anybody with talent and the movie already has me more excited for it.
Credit goes to screenrant.com for the featured image.
