THE MARVELS Director Nia DaCosta Says CAPTAIN MARVEL Sequel Was NOT The Movie She Pitched Or Shot

The Marvels director Nia DaCosta has reflected on shooting the Captain Marvel sequel and confirms that the movie we saw in theaters wasn't the one she pitched or shot before Marvel Studios intervened.

News

By JoshWilding - Apr 04, 2025 08:04 AM EST

Filed Under: The Marvels

Source: Deadline

The Marvels was released at the tail end of 2023's Hollywood strikes, and despite scoring mostly positive reviews (it sits at 62% on Rotten Tomatoes), the Captain Marvel sequel only grossed $206.1 million worldwide.

That makes it one of Marvel Studios' biggest box office flops, and fans continue to debate what went wrong. After all, how could a follow-up to a $1 billion blockbuster and critically acclaimed shows like WandaVision and Ms. Marvel fall so short of expectations?

The fact is, it happened, and filmmaker Nia DaCosta has finally reflected on her MCU experience. Talking at Dublin's second annual screenwriting festival, she started by saying a Marvel movie was her dream project because "she was a big comic book nerd growing up."

However, it didn't take long for the reality of working in the MCU to set in for the Candyman director. Explaining that she "stepped into a system" and had to "lean into the process," DaCosta added, "They had a date, and they were prepping certain things, and you just have to lean into the process hardcore."

"The way they make those films is very different to the way, ideally, I would make a film, so you just have to lean into the process and hope for the best," she continued. "The best didn’t happen this time, but you kind of have to trust in the machine."

"It was interesting because there was a certain point when I was like, ‘Ok, this isn’t going to be the movie that I pitched or even the first version of the movie that I shot’ so I realised that this is now an experience and it’s learning curve and it really makes you stronger as a filmmaker in terms of your ability to navigate," DaCosta concluded.

Marvel Studios is renowned for using reshoots to tinker with and improve its movies. However, in recent years, those appear to have largely done the opposite, with Captain America: Brave New World the most recent example. The Marvels ultimately lost the studio around $237 million.

It seems the issue is that something is going wrong with these movies during production, with not even reshoots able to course correct. With any luck, that's about to change, especially as Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige is no longer spread so thin balancing a busy movie slate and all those Disney+ TV shows Bob Chapek ordered.

DaCosta also commented on working on the upcoming 28 Years Later sequel, The Bone Temple. "I’m really proud of these movies," she said. "I told them that I wasn’t going to make a Danny Boyle movie because that would be impossible and also not of interest to me as a filmmaker."

She added that her hope is the movie has a "fresh take" and "individual language."

The Marvels is available to watch on Disney+.

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83 Comments

1 2 3

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 8:14 AM

I actually thought the movie was fine. It was actually better than the first imo. The villian was just too 2 dimensional.

Saying that, it's definitely not top shelf marvel.

Fogs - 4/4/2025, 8:21 AM

@NoDaysOff - villain from Spaceballs.

Polaris - 4/4/2025, 8:23 AM

@NoDaysOff - I agree

Scarilian - 4/4/2025, 8:25 AM

@NoDaysOff -
There's a lot wrong with the film, but a noticeable aspect is that it feels like we skipped an entire movie focusing on the fallout of the first film, dealing with Carol exploring who she is in her different identities, potential revenge of Yon-Rogg, the conflict with the Supreme Intelligence, the Kree-Skrull War, the return of Ronan the Accuser, etc...

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 8:29 AM

@Scarilian - Yeah, but it was called the Marvels, not Captain Marvel 2. It was more set up as a sequel to all 3 characters now as a collective following their inital debuts. In that regard, to me at least it was fine.

Scarilian - 4/4/2025, 8:36 AM

@Fogs -
I think they forgot that Ronan died and intended to use him, then intended for it to be a multiverse variant given the Power Stone style Hammer returning.

One of the original plots certainly dealt more into the conflict between Monica, Maria and Carol in regards to Carol's actions inadvertently giving her Maria space cancer - this was teased in WandaVision and mentioned briefly in the movie but never explored in depth.

In an ideal world where Captain Marvel was written well, the films would have explored the Kree-Skrull war from both sides, starting with us sympathetic for the Skrulls and ending with us sympathetic for the Kree.

It felt like the child Skrull introduced may have been teasing that character becoming Veranke, the insane Queen of the Skrulls.

Scarilian - 4/4/2025, 8:37 AM

@NoDaysOff -
Failed to set-up any of them though. You would'nt know what Kamala's powers are from watching The Marvels. Monica gets entirely different powers she didn't have prior and Carol becomes a genocidal world destroying monster.

TheFinestSmack - 4/4/2025, 8:48 AM

@NoDaysOff - I also actually thought it wasn't as bad as people said, actually. I like Zawe, but her villain was just poorly written. It had some fun moments though. Overall movie was a 6/10 for me.

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 8:50 AM

@TheFinestSmack - agreed. Iman Vellani was still good fun to watch. I hope she goes far.

dragon316 - 4/4/2025, 9:39 AM

@NoDaysOff - I felt same way except for villian easy forgotten

byrd42 - 4/4/2025, 9:48 AM

@NoDaysOff - it was terrible. Trained kree warriors invaded a suburban home and a suburban couple were helping to fight them to a standstill. They would have been dead or subdued in seconds. There were so many other bad things

byrd42 - 4/4/2025, 9:52 AM

@NoDaysOff - childish good fun like that (super heroes smiling their way through fights) should be reserved for nick at night movies, not the MCU. It was awful in that context. This was clearly a fantasy world different than the world we saw in endgame but they really expect fans to accept its the same universe?

Goldboink - 4/4/2025, 11:07 AM

@NoDaysOff -
I found it entertaining but not enough to rewatch, which is my standard. Lots of incel hate that I don't understand. It sure could have been better though.

TuFaUtbe - 4/4/2025, 1:38 PM

@Scarilian - It sounds like you're talking about a film that feels rushed or like it skipped over key plot developments. From your point, it seems like the story could have benefited from more time spent exploring Carol Danvers' journey—her identity struggles, facing off with Yon-Rogg, and diving deeper into the Kree-Skrull War. It also sounds like there was potential to delve more into the conflicts surrounding Ronan the Accuser and the Supreme Intelligence.

I totally get the frustration. Sometimes, when sequels or follow-ups don't fully explore the emotional or narrative beats left by the first movie, it can feel like important aspects of the story were glossed over. A whole film dedicated to Carol working through her past and facing the consequences of her actions could've been really powerful.

What do you think would’ve been the most interesting part to explore if they had taken the time to do so?

Scarilian - 4/4/2025, 4:38 PM

@TuFaUtbe -
"What do you think would’ve been the most interesting part to explore if they had taken the time to do so?"

Would depend on the time period the movie is set, but generally would have wanted it to humanize and at the same time weaken Carol Danvers so she's more relatable to the audience and more vulnerable so the action scenes have more stakes.

Adding a level of complexity to the Kree-Skrull war would also have benefited them, giving Carol more responsibility and having her question if her decisions from the previous film were the right ones.

It addresses the complaints from the previous film while also allowing them to explore her character more.

FrankenDad - 4/4/2025, 8:18 AM

Marvels wasn’t one of my favorites by any means, but I thought it was enjoyable. If nothing else the action scenes were a blast!

bobevanz - 4/4/2025, 8:23 AM

Bingo. They hire directors and writers for THEIR vision and not to inspire creativity. The committe thing worked back in the day, now the new people are taking down Marvel. Feige and a couple others are the only ones left from 2008

WruceBayne - 4/4/2025, 8:33 AM

@bobevanz - yeah, I’m thinking Marvel was/is hiring “new and edgy” directors based on their name recognition and then micromanaging the movie until the directors original vision is unrecognizable.

Usernametaken - 4/4/2025, 8:27 AM

Marvel Directors are treated exactly the same as any other hired crew member, that's all.

You're hired to do this, we pay you, you'll do as we tell you to. It's not very compatible with creative people and that's probably why the creative side of the MCU has been

Wahhvacado - 4/4/2025, 8:31 AM

It had some decent parts. I can see why people disliked the musical planet. Lower tier for me but not the bottom

vectorsigma - 4/4/2025, 8:33 AM

With Gunn's mantra of "you do you" for directors and writers in the DCU is a good sign that it has a good future. Superman is getting a lot of excitement from the general audience based on the recent sneek peak and that is a good start.

Unless Feige follows this approach, they will be DOA.

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 8:36 AM

@vectorsigma - Man i wonder how long Gunn and Safran need to be successful in their roles before they start being seen as the villain.

vectorsigma - 4/4/2025, 8:43 AM

@NoDaysOff - i dont think they will be. Gunn is a creative and Safran the business side. They are both good on what they do and it is good they are doing it separately

Feige only struck gold with a pioneering concept, had good creatives early on, but lost steam in the end because he did not support creatives and just think of them as some low level content creators. He cant even rehire guys like Joss whedon and the russos are hacks

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 8:45 AM

@vectorsigma -

vectorsigma - 4/4/2025, 8:52 AM

@NoDaysOff - i have trust in great creatives like Gunn.

Feige need to step down and the mcu replace him with a creative as well and reboot

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 9:02 AM

@vectorsigma - The reason Gunn is allowed to be solely the creative force IS because he has a partner. Feige has managed to accomplish so much more ( i don't want to say on his own, as you you it takes a village) when you consider he was running Marvel Studios before Disney's acquisition, where they still don't completely own all their characters like WB/DC. You need to have a good business and creative mind to juggle all that and when you're trying to deliver to the fans good entertainment with well known and loved characters.

I agree at some point he's going to need to pass the baton, but he's given more hits than misses, and seeing as he kind of started with X-Men, i would like to see him at least star the mutant saga. Whether that's jointly with his successor or alone, i'm still here for it.

You'll still be watching, as will I. Even with the DC stuff.

vectorsigma - 4/4/2025, 9:23 AM

@NoDaysOff - oh ofc im still watching both.

I am not downsizing Feige's accomplishments during Phases 1-3. The problem is he stopped hiring good creatives after that, i dont know, maybe he thought the brand itself will pull everything up. But that didnt happen.

I hope he gets to change his approach and go back to the simpler ones back then when the mcu was starting. And maybe that is starting with good writers/directors.

As of now, im more excited with DC as im liking what is happening there so far

NoDaysOff - 4/4/2025, 9:31 AM

@vectorsigma - Yeah, i think the change was more down to them expanding beyond their reach, but i feel this is more Disney's fault pushing Disney+ and them banking on fans showing up because the opportunity was there to see other character fleshed out rather than having to wait 2 to 5 years for a sequel or new movie (the same issue with Star wars TV and sequel trilogy). I was quantity over quality, but at least they allowed Feige to stay (that was probably part of the initial deal).

They seem to reverting back to the older model, but time will tell. Secret Wars will no doubt have an emotional pay off, but nothing is going to match the 'end' Endgame gave us. This whole saga so far has been mostly down to payoffs on nostalgia. I will definitley be watching, but my expectaatitons are realistic. But to me Feige still is the right guy.

I hope Gunn and Saffran can deliver too.

fanboy03191 - 4/4/2025, 12:43 PM

@vectorsigma - I’m inclined to agree. He’s a fantastic producer who knows the business and the process- he’s been around in the credits since X-Men 2000. But how creative is he? Judging from the last few years with an exception here and there, not very. Get a creative brain masterminding the story, let Feige do the rest and reap the damn rewards with customer satisfaction.

AC1 - 4/4/2025, 8:36 AM

Definitely a step up from the first Captain Marvel movie in most ways, but still ended up being a bit forgettable when all was said and done. If there's a third movie hopefully they manage to get the best bits from both movies; villain and narrative dynamics that are on par with the first movie, but giving the lead(s) actual characterisation and personalities and the film an actual entertaining tone like the second movie did.

Dunno if that's likely to happen though and it does kinda seem like Brie Larson isn't super interested in returning, which is understandable considering how underutilized the character has been and how douchey a lot of fans have been towards her online.

TheVisionary25 - 4/4/2025, 9:57 AM

@AC1 - I agree , well said

I think both movies had their merits & shortcomings , the former of which combined could have made both films better.

bkmeijer1 - 4/4/2025, 8:50 AM

They should've pitched a second movie as Secret Invasion. The current movie show and movie are mediocre, but I think it would've been great with the Civil War treatment.

Vigor - 4/4/2025, 9:39 AM

@bkmeijer1 - after endgame, it should have been capt marvel 2: Secret invasion to cap off phase 4. All of phase 4 should have been about the growing skrull threat with some minor multiverse stuff thrown in to setup the next phases

And then Avengers 5: Kang dynasty to cap off phase 5. That way they're not stretching the Kang stuff for 3 phases and knock out a fun film quickly. That should be the film The avengers reassemble and we see the Champions come into the light.

Then phase 6 can be F4, mutants, galactus, and of course DOOM and secret wars

bkmeijer1 - 4/4/2025, 11:11 AM

@Vigor - I wouldn't mind them being switched around either, but you're right Secret Invasion and Kang Dynasty would've been great phase finales.

DarkeyeZ - 4/4/2025, 8:52 AM

The film was good, but not great. It was entertaining , but it's pacing was all off. also, it's balancing of "serious and dark" with "fun and silly" was way out of whack.

byrd42 - 4/4/2025, 10:01 AM

@DarkeyeZ - yes it was way out of whack for sure. Both it and Ms marvel have the feel of nikelodian caliber orojects, geared towards 8 year old children. Up until the release of those projects every MCU release seemed to reasonably fit into the same fantasy world but none of this fit at all. An untrained, unathletic

byrd42 - 4/4/2025, 10:05 AM

@byrd42 -... Ms marvel jumping out her bedroom window hoping to be able to grab a tree branch and keeping herself from breaking a bunch of bones was childish nonsense. People that stupid don't make it to their teens still walking upright. It was obvious then that this character would never fit. Very few spoke out out of fear of being called racist.

MadThanos - 4/4/2025, 8:54 AM

The Marvels is pure shit. Do I think it's because of Nia da Costa? No. This one it's on Marvel.

"they were prepping certain things"

Of course, they have already prepared the art of the movie, chosen the second unit, stunt coordinator, and the story... So how could a director come in and work under those conditions?

And by the way, I despise Brie Larson, but I think she, and whoever was responsible for this part, humanized the Captain Marvel character in an unexpected way for me.

BruceWayng - 4/4/2025, 9:00 AM

So you’re telling me THIS wasn’t the movie you originally pitched…OOOOK Nia, whatever you say boo….

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DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.