Posted yesterday at 8:00 a.m.
Who is Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel?
She’s a 16-year-old girl from Jersey City with a passion for the Avengers, especially Captain Marvel. She idealizes the life of superheroes because it seems simple: they fight crime while looking cool. For her part, she has to deal with boys, her religion, her culture, her family, high school… and now she has to tame her new powers. The series allows you to see her grow up and become her own version of what a superheroine is.
Qu’aimez-vous le plus chez elle ?
Le personnage de Ms. Marvel comprend ce qu’est être une fan et tout ce que signifie cette culture. C’est une perspective que nous n’avons pas vraiment vue dans le MCU, jusqu’à maintenant. Par exemple, qu’est-ce qu’une ado qui vit dans cet univers sait réellement des Avengers ou des Guardians ? Son amour pour ces héros est semblable à celui de tellement de fans du MCU et de comics. Elle a la chance de vivre leur rêve.
PHOTO GEORGE PIMENTEL, FOURNIE PAR DISNEY
Iman Vellani au cours d’un évènement promotionnel à Toronto, le 30 mai dernier
Il n’y a pas si longtemps, c’était votre rêve aussi, n’est-ce pas ?
J’ai grandi avec le MCU ! Iron Man est sorti quand j’avais environ 6 ans, alors c’est quelque chose qui a toujours fait partie de ma vie. Mon école secondaire était tout près d’une boutique de bandes dessinées et j’y allais constamment pour lire tous les Invincible Iron Man ou Silver Surfer. Un jour, j’ai vu une BD d’Ironheart et Kamala était avec elle sur la couverture. J’avais 15 ans et je suis tombée dans une frénésie de Ms. Marvel. C’était une obsession ! C’était mon déguisement pour l’Halloween !
La série [La Presse a pu visionner deux des six épisodes] gives an important place to Pakistani and South Asian culture, as well as to Muslim rites and symbols. How was the aspect of representativeness approached?
I think it’s wonderful that a company as big as Marvel is creating space for characters like Kamala to exist. These films and series are shown all over the world, so it makes sense that they represent people from all corners of the world. As in the comics, we will see children of immigrants who are proud of their culture. It’s an important aspect of the show, whether it’s through the relationships between the people, the music, or the food.
Kamala’s next adventure will be in the movie The Marvelsby Nia DaCosta, due July 28, 2023. What can you reveal?
It’s gonna be really fun! Turn with Teyonah [Parris, qui incarne Monica Rambeau] and Brie [Larson, de retour dans le rôle de Carol Danvers, alias Captain Marvel] was truly amazing. I look forward to being able to say more…
In addition to these, have you met any other actors who are part of the MCU?
A few, in fact, since we shot Ms.Marvel in the same place as Spider-Man: No Way Home and Loki. My second week on set, I went to see Barry, a security guard at Marvel, and I said, “Bro, I’ve been here two weeks and I haven’t met any of the Toms. [Holland et Hiddleston]. He replied: “I’ll be back.” Fifteen minutes later he told me that Tom Hiddleston wanted to meet me. Since I was in my pajamas at the time, I asked Barry if he could reschedule the meeting, but he told me that Tom Hiddleston was waiting for me now. He came in a Loki costume and I collapsed in embarrassment. I was frozen to the ground and looked up to see this gigantic man approaching me. When I finally came to my senses, we talked for about twenty minutes. He was really welcoming and comforting. He told me about his experience, what to expect and how to take care of myself. It was great! He’s the first celebrity I’ve met in person.
“Kamala is in front of us! »
The main screenwriter of Ms.Marvel, Bisha K. Ali, has fond memories of the day she met Iman Vellani. “She was doing a screen test. In fact, it was the first time she was on camera and we watched her perform a scene. I turned to look at Sarah Finn [chef de la distribution] and, overcome by emotion, I shouted to her: “It’s her!” My character exists! After writing and rewriting hundreds of pages, seeing her alive, in front of me, was awesome. »
Ms.MarvelWednesdays, on Disney+