Marvel Studios has had mixed fortunes with introducing new characters during the Multiverse Saga. Some have failed to connect with fans, while others have taken off big time (a few even debuted, only to vanish into the ether).
We first met the Nova Corps in Guardians of the Galaxy in 2014. There was nothing in that movie to indicate that they had any recruits wielding the Nova Force, and the intergalactic police force was decimated off-screen by Thanos before Avengers: Infinity War started.
Following rumours of a TV series, it's since been confirmed that Marvel Studios is in the early stages of developing a Nova movie. If handled the right way, it stands a chance of adding a mighty new hero to the MCU and perhaps even bringing the Guardians back sans James Gunn.
Loki Season 1 Head Writer and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness scribe Michael Waldron is attached to write and direct the movie, and he shared an update on the project while speaking to Variety for Chad Powers Season 2.
"I don’t even know what I can say as an answer to this question without my computer just catching on fire. But I love the character of Nova," he shared. "I love Rich Rider, and I’ve gotten to work at Marvel with a bunch of great filmmakers. I worked so closely with Sam Raimi and learned so much from him."
Waldron continued, "He is the biggest influence for me as a filmmaker; everything on 'Chad Powers' is filtered through Sam, because watching how he did it was my film school. So, to get to write and direct a movie for Marvel would be a dream come true. I hope it gets to happen."
The trade cheekily asked whether he's figured out a way to cast Glen Powell in the movie (the Running Man star is a popular suggestion for Richard Rider), prompting him to reply, "These are the questions to be hypothetically asking someone who was hypothetically directing the movie. But that person, if they wanted to hold on to that job, should not answer those questions."
Nova has been through a few iterations, and we know at least one version was going to revolve around Rider rebuilding the Nova Corps after Thanos' attack on Xandar, just as Annihilus and his Annihilation Wave invaded.
Glenn Close and John C. Reilly were being eyed to return as their Guardians of the Galaxy characters, with Sam Alexander also expected to appear. We'll see what happens with Waldron's version over the next few years.