Captain Marvel hit theatres on March 8 2019 as the newest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie has already crushed its milestone of $1 billion in the box office, making it the biggest worldwide opening of all time for a female-led film. The movie made history for Marvel Studios as their first MCU movie featuring a female lead. Characters such as Black Widow and Scarlet Witch have been present in the movies since the beginning, but Brie Larson, portraying the powerful Captain Marvel herself, is the first woman to head her own story. For most moviegoers, the movie was a funny, enjoyable experience for all ages. “Fans of the genre can breathe easy and enjoy a fantastic, hilarious adventure”, said critic Jose Martin. However, some people have been criticizing Larson’s use of the role as a soapbox for her social activism.
Larson has used her newfound popularity in the Marvel fandom as a way to spread a message about equality and inclusivity. Larson is a huge activist for equality in regards of gender, race, sexuality, and ability. Within her press tour for the movie, Larson has resigned to bringing more attention to the females behind the scenes, as well as wearing mostly female designers.
“Inclusion has to be a choice; it’s not happening naturally,” Larson said in her interview with InStyle magazine.
While the feminist and other activist communities fully support Larson’s activism, there are some people that are very upset with her. People have labeled her as a “SJW” (Social Justice Warrior), a term used negatively for those who have socially progressive views, such as those in support of feminism, anti-racism, LGBTQ+ equality, etc.
Angry fans have even gone so far as to try to tank the movie’s Rotten Tomatoes score, just as was done to Black Panther last year. DC fans started a small movement intended to tank the movie’s score, using the hashtags “#dcovermarvel” and “#bringdowndisney”, dropping the score to 6% when the movie came out (It later rose to 97%, when fans stood up for Marvel and for the superior quality of the movie).
Despite all of the hatred thrown Larson’s way, she has continued to stand her ground and fight for inclusivity in the modern world. She will be making her directorial debut in Unicorn Store, starring a wide range of different actors and actresses, including Samuel L. Jackson, Mamoudou Athie, and Karan Soni. The film is set to stream on Netflix on April 5, 2019.