--- description: Marvel announced at Comic-Con that Brie Larson will take on the role of Captain Marvel in Marvel Studio's first female-led superhero film title: Why Brie Larson Will Make the Perfect Captain Marvel image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c091d00f34d0b60/69889f08428a9eb302cd3917/captain-marvel-brie-larson.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Why Brie Larson Will Make the Perfect Captain Marvel  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Jul 24, 2016 2:33 PM CUT  Brie Larson (L) and Captain Marvel (R) Brie Larson (L) and Captain Marvel (R)Alberto E. Rodriguez—Getty Images; Marvel  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Jul 24, 2016 2:33 PM CUT Marvel [announced](http://time.com/4420771/brie-larson-captain-marvel-movie/ "undefined") Saturday night at Comic-Con that [Brie Larson](http://time.com/4239723/oscars-2016-brie-larson-best-actress/ "undefined") will take on the role of [Captain Marvel](http://time.com/3554606/captain-marvel-movie-kelly-sue-deconnick/ "undefined") in Marvel Studio’s first female-led superhero film. _Captain Marvel_ doesn’t hit theaters until 2019, but fans at Comic-Con greeted the news that the _Room_ actress would be taking on the role with cheers. And with good reason: Brie Larson will make a fantastic Captain Marvel. She even got Captain America actor Chris Evans’ [seal of approval](http://motto.time.com/4358521/chris-evans-brie-larson-captain-marvel/ "undefined"). For the uninitiated, Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, is a fighter pilot with alien DNA. She can fly and shoot beams out of her hands. A control freak, she has the swagger of Chuck Yeager and the wise-cracking tendencies of Tony Stark. In the comics, she works with both the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy, which means she just might be the linchpin to the Marvel universe when those two teams eventually have to come together to battle one big enemy. ([Read a full explainer of Captain Marvel’s origin and powers here.](http://time.com/3554606/captain-marvel-movie-kelly-sue-deconnick/ "undefined")) Brie Larson’s roles in _Trainwreck_ and _21 Jump Street_ often had her playing the straight woman to comedians like Amy Schumer or Jonah Hill. But they did prove she can snark with the best of them. She’ll be able to hold her own among, say, Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Pratt. _Room_ and indie film _Short Term 12_ demonstrated the emotional depth she can bring to a character, an essential trait for Marvel’s films that strike a careful balance between drama and fun. As far as the physical side of things, Larson said she put on 15 pounds of muscle training for _Room_, and she recently filmed _Kong: Skull Island_, where as a war photographer, she had to wrangle with the wild terrain of Vietnam and Australia and master the run-away-from-a-giant-ape sprint. Perhaps most important, Larsons’ rapid ascent to stardom suggests that she can handle the pressure that comes with this role. In an age where about three superhero films are made a year, it’s been over a decade since a major studio has produced a female-led superhero film. Executives have long assumed that audiences, and especially male audiences, don’t want to see a woman kick butt. That’s begun to change with the success of films like _The Hunger Games_ and characters like Black Widow from _The Avengers_ and, more recently, Harley Quinn from _Suicide Squad_. And now we’re finally getting female superhero movies with DC and Warner Bros.’ _Wonder Woman_ out next summer, and then with _Captain Marvel_. Both will be scrutinized more than any male superhero film to see if they have “mass appeal.” During her press tour for _Room_, Larson [spoke out](http://variety.com/2015/film/in-contention/brie-larson-room-diversity-telluride-1201598486/ "undefined") about the lack of female stories on screen. Perhaps more important, she helped make an indie movie about an abused mother and her child popular enough to win an Oscar. That’s no small feat and speaks to her appeal as both a powerful actress and an advocate for her work. She’s also been careful to choose robust roles—often in smaller films like _Scott Pilgrim vs. The World_ or _Spectacular Now_. That’s good preparation for Captain marvel, who is way more than a spandex suit. “The test that I always give young writers is if you can take out your female character and replace her with a sexy lamp and your plot still functions, you’re doing it wrong,” current _Captain Marvel_ writer Kelly Sue DeConnick [told](http://time.com/3554606/captain-marvel-movie-kelly-sue-deconnick/ "undefined") TIME in 2014\. Odds are that Larson will shine brighter than any sexy lamp ever could. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4420882/brie-larson-captain-marvel-comic-con/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4420882/brie-larson-captain-marvel-comic-con/"},"headline":"Why Brie Larson Will Make the Perfect Captain Marvel","datePublished":"2016-07-24T14:33:07.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T23:29:59.948Z","description":"The Room actress will star in Marvel Studio's first female superhero film","url":"https://time.com/4420882/brie-larson-captain-marvel-comic-con/","keywords":["movies"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c091d00f34d0b60/69889f08428a9eb302cd3917/captain-marvel-brie-larson.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliana Dockterman","jobTitle":"Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3c091d00f34d0b60/69889f08428a9eb302cd3917/captain-marvel-brie-larson.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"captain-marvel-brie-larson","caption":"captain marvel","creditText":"Alberto E. 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