\n<\/p>\n
Directed by Nia DaCosta (\u201cCandyman\u201d<\/a>), \u201cThe Marvels\u201d in particular, appears to be a tough project to break through the fog of so-called superhero fatigue. Promotion around the film has been affected by the SAG-AFTRA strike. Even so, the film is billed as an ensemble movie in which two of its central trio of stars \u2014 Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau and Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan (or Ms. Marvel, the M.C.U.\u2019s first Muslim superhero) \u2014 are, to the wider world, relative unknowns.<\/p>\n The film\u2019s release may also be affected by the biases of some fans who are uninterested in a project featuring female superheroes. Earlier this year, when the first trailer for \u201cThe Marvels\u201d was released, news reports noted that many fans had appeared to \u201cdislike-bomb\u201d the video<\/a>: Within hours of its posting on YouTube, the trailer received hundreds of thousands of dislikes along with negative comments about the cast. (The site removed the dislike counter in 2021, though online tools make the number viewable to users.)<\/p>\n As for Larson, speculation has swirled over her possible disillusionment with the M.C.U. as a result of the intense and often sexist backlash she has received from audiences. In October, Joanna Robinson, the co-author of \u201cMCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios,\u201d claimed<\/a> that Larson \u201cdoesn\u2019t want to play Carol Danvers anymore.\u201d Larson herself addressed the online hate that led to fans review-bombing the original film<\/a> on RottenTomatoes.com. Many of the negative reviews, which were removed<\/a> by the site, referred to Larson\u2019s prerelease comments<\/a> about wanting to ensure greater diversity among journalists covering the movie. When Variety asked last year in a red carpet interview<\/a> how long she planned to play Danvers, she responded pointedly, \u201cI don\u2019t know. Does anyone want me to do it again?\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, getting \u201cThe Marvels\u201d to the finish line required four weeks of reshoots and a premiere date that was pushed back multiple times. Those delays prompted DaCosta to complete postproduction remotely in London while she began work on her next film, a move that has fueled gossip about trouble behind the scenes.<\/p>\n DaCosta, though, dismissed the speculation in a recent interview with the YouTuber Jake Hamilton<\/a>. \u201cActually at the time that I left to go to London to start prep on my next film, everyone was so clear about what the film was, what we wanted, everyone knew what I wanted,\u201d she said. \u201cSo it really wasn\u2019t the dramatic sort of thing that I think people are feeling like it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n