The Marvels: Iman Vellani and Teyonah Parris Praise Director Nia DaCosta

The Marvels stars praise Nia DaCosta for being a unifying force in directing the Marvel team-up.

By Aaron Perine

The Marvels's director Nia DaCosta got some very specific praise from Iman Vellani and Teyonah Parris. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly before the SAG-AFTRA strike, the duo commended her approach to the MCU and her ability to keep everyone on the same page. All three of these performers come from different parts of the Marvel Studios landscape. Vellani is in her second project and first big film, and Parris is in her biggest movie yet. It's a lot to juggle alongside a pandemic and helming the follow-up to a billion dollar movie.

But, Parris and Vellani both agree that DaCosta did an amazing job keeping them focused during The Marvels. Weaving together seemingly disparate threads into a story about a family reconnecting. The trailer has already made a big impact online with fans that were missing these three ladies. "Even if you work with her once, you do feel like, 'Oh, we're the best of buds,'" Parris explained of DaCosta. "I love how smart she is. I love how strong her point of view is. And I love that she has a very fresh take on material."

"She has a really calm vibe, too," Vellani added. "These movies are not easy to make at all. There's like a million, bajillion little moving pieces. She and Mary [Livanos] did such a great job to keep morale high. Even if there were days where they wanted to rip people's heads off, they would never show it and never put their stress on anyone else."

Nia DaCosta Had To Find Balance Between Directing and Comic Book Fandom

captain-marvel-2-nia-dacosta-1232134-1252383.jpg

Marvel fans can count Nia DaCosta among their number. In the same interview, she told EW that her comic book fandom has to be put aside for certain elements of the MCU. The director spoke about how the Marvel Studios movies deviate from the books quite a bit. In fact, Kevin Feige had to step in and get her to think outside of her head a bit for The Marvels. Changes are part of the game in adaptations, and it was time to think about where the MCU is headed rather than where comic book storylines went.

"The biggest challenge was finding the balance between my point of view as a director and as a comic book nerd," DaCosta revealed. "Obviously, there are changes between the comics and the movies, and sometimes I'm like, 'Whoa, whoa, whoa!' Sometimes Kevin [Feige] would be like, 'You're being too much of a nerd. Please stop.'"

Related:

What Is The MCU Trio Up Against In The Marvels?

the-marvels-captain-marvel-new-costume.jpg
(Photo: Marvel Studios)

Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When her duties send her to an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers become entangled with that of Jersey City super-fan, Kamala Khan aka Ms. Marvel, and Carol's estranged niece, now S.A.B.E.R. astronaut Captain Monica Rambeau. Together, this unlikely trio must team-up and learn to work in concert to save the universe as "The Marvels."

Did the trailer make you more excited for The Marvels? Tell us down in the comments!

Trending Now: