Thunderbolts* brought back many familiar faces, eventually revealing them as the MCU's "New Avengers." We also met Mel, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine's put-upon assistant, played by Geraldine Viswanathan.
Mel doesn't suit up and shows no sign of having the same supersonic sound abilities as her comic book counterpart, Songbird. The response to Mel has been positive, though, and it surely wouldn't be that hard to have her suit up as the hero somewhere down the line.
Viswanathan has shared some photos on social media this week, and she's rocking striking white-blonde hair. Imagine a pink streak in that, and the actor would look like she's stepped straight out of the pages of the comic books as Songbird.
Unfortunately, the images are unrelated to her MCU role, but they offer at least an idea of what Viswanathan could look like as a comic-accurate Songbird. It's not currently clear when, where, or even if that will happen.
Melissa Gold, originally known as Screaming Mimi, debuted in 1979's Marvel Two-in-One #54. She was created by Mark Gruenwald, Ralph Macchio, and John Byrne, and later became the superhero known as Songbird after joining the Thunderbolts.
"The scale of [Thunderbolts*] was ridiculous and terrifying in a new way," Viswanathan previously said of her MCU debut. "It was like, 'Oh, there are 500 extras and a helicopter in this scene, so I’d better not [frick] up my line.'"
"[Julia Louis-Dreyfus] is the actual queen. I call her the most perfect person in America," she added. "It was insane to work with her and then be watching puppy videos together."
You can see some of the outtakes shared by Viswanathan in the Instagram post below. The official photoshoot can be found at Fashion Journal.
In Thunderbolts*, Marvel Studios assembles an unconventional team of antiheroes - Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, Ghost, Taskmaster and John Walker. After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap set by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, these disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts.
Will this dysfunctional group tear themselves apart, or find redemption and unite as something much more before it’s too late?
"Thunderbolts* redefines superhero storytelling to deliver a moving and powerful story that does for the 'Multiverse Saga' what The Avengers did for the 'Infinity Saga' in 2012," we said in our review. "These heroes have earned their place on a Wheaties box."
The cast of Thunderbolts* will be led by Florence Pugh as Yelena Boleva, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, David Harbour as Red Guardian, Wyatt Russell as U.S. Agent, Hannah John-Kamen as Ghost, Olga Kurylenko as Taskmaster, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, and Lewis Pullman as "Bob."
Written by Eric Pearson, Lee Sung Jin, and Joanna Calo, and directed by Jake Schreier, Thunderbolts* is now playing in theaters.