Sana Amanat (‘Ms. Marvel’ executive producer): ‘Anyone can be a hero, and by the way, it doesn’t matter what you look like’ [Exclusive Video Interview]
“When I was younger, I did not feel seen. We did not have other characters or heroes that we could look up to that look like us, and you don’t realize what that does to your psyche,” reveals Marvel Studios executive of production and development and “Ms. Marvel” producer Sana Amanat. For our recent webchat she adds, “Now I think about this next generation, and I see my nieces and my goddaughters, and my nephews. And what is that going to do to the rest of their lives that they see that there is a Kamala Khan action figure out there, that those posters exist. Maybe, then, that chip is off their shoulder, and it can really expand upon their true character. They can really find their true potential without some of that weight, you know, that’s what I’m excited about.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
SEE Exclusive Video Interview: Laura Karpman (‘Ms. Marvel’ composer)
“Ms. Marvel” was developed for Disney+ by the show’s head writer Bisha K. Ali, adapted from the Marvel comics featuring Kamala Khan, which were created by Amanat, G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona. The six-episode series stars newcomer Iman Vellani as Kamala, a Pakistani-American teen from Jersey City who lives and breathes everything Avengers. Kamala is an aspiring artist, avid gamer and Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) megafan who spends her time in a fantasy world of her own creation. Her life is changed forever after she discovers that she has powers of her own, by gaining the ability to harness cosmic energy and create hard light constructs from a magical bangle. This shocking discovery, of which only her best friend Bruno (Matt Lintz) is aware, thrusts Kamala into a spotlight she’s not quite ready for, especially since she’s already living under the watchful eye of her overprotective parents (Zenobia Shroff and Mohan Kapur), eventually becoming the MCU’s first Muslim superhero. “Ms. Marvel” is the seventh TV series in Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the Emmy-nominated “WandaVision,” “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” “Loki,” “What If…?” and “Moon Knight” and “Hawkeye.”
“It actually really makes me very emotional; professionally and personally. It makes me really emotional, because sometimes I don’t realize what we have done until we get to a moment where I’m at somebody’s birthday party, like my niece’s birthday party, or I’m at a convention, and I have a mother or a young woman, or someone come up to me and just say ‘thank you,’ and say that they’re so grateful that their child, their sister, they have someone that they can finally relate to, and then ultimately, that they finally feel seen,” Amanat explains about the impact that the Kamala Khan character and this series has on people. “We understood the responsibility of creating someone that was authentic and fun and relatable, but also just true to her cultural and religious background. That was incredibly important to us, and so making sure that we stuck true to that and understanding that the characters in the Marvel universe are ideals for so many people. I grew up loving Spider-Man for a reason, because of what Spider-Man represented. Anyone could be a hero. Anyone can do great things, even though you might be awkward or shy or you have a weird family situation. I think it rings so much more true when you have someone who literally represents all of those things for people of color, who feel underrepresented or feel awkward, or feel like they’re not valuable,” she says. “That’s why it’s even more important that they have heroes, not only that they can relate to, but that really look like them, and that was the idea behind ultimately the creation of Kamala. It does capture the ideals of what the Marvel universe are all about. Anyone can be a hero, and by the way, it doesn’t matter what you look like.”
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