Ms. Marvel’s Iman Vellani Reveals Her Personal History With Kamala Khan, Reading Marvel Comics

We’re just a few days away from the premiere of Ms. Marvel, the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe original series to make its debut on Disney+. The series will introduce a number of new fans to Kamala Khan / Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani), the first Pakistani American superhero within the pages of Marvel Comics. Kamala has already become a bonafide fan favorite thanks to her comic appearances — and apparently, Vellani also has a personal history with the character. A new interview with The Hollywood Reporter sheds light on how Vellani first became acquainted with the character, with her first picking up Ms. Marvel #19 at a local comic book store.

“I’m like, ‘OK, who’s this brown girl now?’” Vellani revealed. “It just blew my mind that a superhero comic was showcasing Eid [the Muslim festival marking the end of Ramadan].”

“She was my total comfort character,” Vellani revealed. “She felt so much like me, and a lot of that comes from not just her background and ethnicity but because she’s such a fan of the Marvel universe, too.”

Ms. Marvel introduces Kamala Khan-a 16-year-old Pakistani American from Jersey City. An aspiring artist, an avid gamer and a voracious fan-fiction scribe, she is a huge fan of the Avengers-and one in particular, Captain Marvel. But Kamala has always struggled to find her place in the world-that is, until she gets super powers like the heroes she’s always looked up to.

Alongside Vellani in the eponymous role, Aramis Knight, Saagar Shaikh, Rish Shah, Matt Lintz, Zenobia Shroff, and Mohan Kapur have been cast in various roles in the show. Written by a room led by Bisha K. Ali, directing duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah helmed the first and sixth episodes of the show’s first season. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy directed three others while Meera Menon directed one episode.

“The fact that the show is being made and they’re including this character in the MCU is [what’s important],” Vellani explained during a previous interview. “I don’t really have to go out of my way and talk about being a Muslim and being Pakistani — it all comes out in the show. People seeing a person like me involved in a project as big as this is, I think, inspiring enough.”

Are you excited for Disney+’s Ms. Marvel series? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Ms. Marvel is set to premiere on Disney+ on June 8th. If you haven’t signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

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