Yesterday (September 17th) brought the news that Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany has been cast as She-Hulk.
The series will be a Disney Plus original, like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and WandaVision. Kat Coiro is set to direct the pilot and further episodes, as well as executive produce. Jessica Gao will write, executive produce and show-run the series.
She-Hulk, aka Jennifer Walters, is Bruce Banner’s cousin. In the MCU, Bruce Banner – the Hulk – is portrayed by Mark Ruffalo, who welcomed Maslany in a Tweet yesterday:
Welcome to the family, cuz! @tatianamaslany #SheHulk https://t.co/VXcaE9Fine
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) September 17, 2020
In the comics, Jennifer got her powers after receiving Bruce Banner’s blood in a transfusion. Her powers differ slightly from her cousin’s, however, in that she stays fully conscious of herself while she’s in her Hulk form – as opposed to Bruce, who is famous for losing his control when he ‘hulks out’.
Of course, Avengers: Endgame showed us that Bruce Banner is now in permanent Hulk form, and so has combined his super-strength with his huge intellect. Whether this will factor in as a plot point in She-Hulk or not remains to be seen, but if Marvel are looking to put a different spin on Jennifer’s origin, it’s entirely plausible she could learn some control techniques from her cousin.
She-Hulk demonstrates Marvel’s commitment to telling female-lead stories. Following Captain Marvel and Black Widow, She-Hulk will introduce another Marvel property with a female lead.
We’ll also soon have WandaVision, with Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch in a leading role, and there is a Ms. Marvel TV show in development. All of this points to a more diverse MCU line-up going forward – especially considering Eternals and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings are on their way t00.
We’ll have to wait a bit longer for any Marvel TV shows to premiere due to disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but for now you can stream the rest of the MCU with a Disney Plus subscription.
