The Marvels director Nia DeCosta has teased a link to an unlikely Marvel villain: Ronan the Accuser.
During an interview with Total Film, the filmmaker hinted that Dar-Benn, The Marvels villain played by Zawe Ashton, may have picked up another interesting artifact. Yes, the Kree War Hammer we saw in the trailer could be linked to the Guardians of the Galaxy.
“Here’s what I will say about that, which in the comics is called the Universal Weapon,” she said. “I would just say, for anyone watching this film, or having expectations, just know that I am deeply devoted to the comics. And so, there’s always clues there.”
The Marvels executive producer Mary Livanos also teased that this hammer is a powerful tool that Dar-Benn uses to help achieve her goal… whatever that means. The Universal Weapon was originally brandished by Ronan the Accuser in both the comic books and the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie. However, the weapon has been notably absent since Ronan’s apparent death.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that Dar-Benn’s Warhammer is merely similar. However, she has already gotten hold of some super-powered bangles similar to Ms. Marvel’s own, which brings up a few pretty cool possibilities.
It could be that Dar-Benn is something of a collector – an evil Indiana Jones type, tracking down lost artifacts across the MCU. However, she could also be a bit of a fan girl, creating her own versions of these powerful artifacts to mimic heroes and villains from across the universe. Either way, it looks as though she has some heavy-duty weapons at her disposal.
“Zawe brings a lot of fun to being evil,” said DaCosta. “Then, on the other end, she also brings a lot of pathos. I wanted a villain that was really fun and definitely on the wrong side of history, but you could see why they thought they were on the right side. That’s something that Zawe also brought to the table – really wanting the villain to be understandable even if you didn’t like her.”
Interestingly, another owner of the Universal Weapon is Carol Danvers’ Kree half-sister, Lauri-Ell. It’s unclear whether this is the direction The Marvels will go in, but DaCosta’s self-confessed nerdship may mean she sticks closer to the comic books than other filmmakers. After all, she also admitted that the MCU’s approach to Incursions in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness “was always very stressful to me”.
The MCU depicts Incursions as the result of prolonged multiversal travel. However, in the comic books, it’s a very different story. Incursions were created by The Beyonders, an omnipotent race that wants to put an end to the multiverse.
The Incursions happen when two realities’ Earths collide over an eight-hour period, triggered by the death of the Molecule Man in those universes, who is essentially a bomb created by the Beyonders to bring about death and destruction.
Clearly, DaCosta wishes the MCU had stuck more closely to its comic book origins, and that may mean a more comic-faithful adaptation when it comes to The Marvels.
Want to read more about The Marvels? Check out the burning questions we have after Secret Invasion as well as everything you need to know about The Marvels.
Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.
source https://www.ign.com/articles/the-marvels-director-teases-link-to-guardians-of-the-galaxy-villain