SECRET INVASION Director Says First Thing Marvel Studios Told Him Was: "Don't Read The Comics"

SECRET INVASION Director Says First Thing Marvel Studios Told Him Was: "Don't Read The Comics"

Secret Invasion director Ali Selim has revealed that Marvel Studios advised him to stay away from the comic books when he signed on to helm the Disney+ series...

By MarkCassidy - Jun 22, 2023 08:06 AM EST
Filed Under: Secret Invasion

The first episode of Secret Invasion is now streaming on Disney+, and if you've read the Marvel Comics event that the series is named after, you should already have realized that this is far from a direct adaptation.

The basic premise of a shape-shifting alien race known as the Skrulls infiltrating positions of power on Earth and plotting to take over the planet remains the same, but the original story was much larger in scale and featured pretty much every major character in the Marvel Universe.

While speaking to Screen Rant, director Ali Selim, who helmed all six episodes of the shadowy espionage thriller, revealed that someone at Marvel Studios advised him to avoid the comics completely when he signed on to the project.

"The first thing I was told is don't read the comics," Selim said. "It had nothing to do with what we're trying to do here."

"This story was really born out of the electricity created between Sam Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn or Nick Fury and Talos in Captain Marvel," he continued. "And they said, 'Oh, we got to do something with that.' So they found a story that would serve that relationship and would expand the MCU and other characters who are not in the comic books. I think it's a story unto itself."

This happens more than you might think - especially when the TV series or movie in question is only loosely inspired by its source material - but it still tends to ruffle a few feathers!

What do you make of Selim's comments? Do you think the comic books should still be referenced? Be sure to share your thoughts down below.

"In Marvel Studios’ new series Secret Invasion, set in the present day MCU, Nick Fury learns of a clandestine invasion of Earth by a faction of shapeshifting Skrulls. Fury joins his allies, including Everett Ross, Maria Hill and the Skrull Talos, who has made a life for himself on Earth. Together they race against time to thwart an imminent Skrull invasion and save humanity."

The series stars Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Cobie Smulders, Martin Freeman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Charlayne Woodard, Killian Scott, Samuel Adewunmi, Dermot Mulroney, Christopher McDonald, Katie Finneran, with Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, and Don Cheadle.

Ali Selim directs and executive-produces, along with fellow executive producers Kevin Feige, Jonathan Schwartz, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Samuel L. Jackson, Ali Selim, Kyle Bradstreet and Brian Tucker. Kyle Bradstreet is also the head writer, and Jennifer L. Booth, Allana Williams and Brant Englestein serve as co-executive producers.

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Spoken
Spoken - 6/22/2023, 8:19 AM
Oh boy….
lvcl
lvcl - 6/22/2023, 9:55 AM
@Spoken -

MCU going from bad to worse...

MARVEL fans...

Variant
Variant - 6/22/2023, 11:32 AM
@lvcl - Nah. This is a dumb thing to jump to conclusions about.
jst5
jst5 - 6/22/2023, 11:54 AM
@lvcl - Marvel is trying to battle DC at this point for being the most clueless....and that sucks to know DC is in that shape being a huge DC fan since the 70's!
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 6/22/2023, 8:21 AM
Variant
Variant - 6/22/2023, 8:24 AM
@ObserverIO - Was Infinity War a direct copy from the comics? Hardly a big deal.
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 6/22/2023, 8:36 AM
@Variant - Have the Russos ever read the comics? Yes, they have.
The Russos nearly even recreated the motion lines on Thanos' snap.

It is a big deal. And makes a significant difference.
Variant
Variant - 6/22/2023, 8:22 AM
It's important to remember the films and shows are not the comics. We should still certainly be maintaining the essence of the characters and the storylines, but if they're direct copies, we depart from creativity, originality, and ultimately we'll just always know what happens next.
Usernametaken
Usernametaken - 6/22/2023, 8:34 AM
@Variant - Then don't call it Secret Invasion...
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 6/22/2023, 8:41 AM
@Variant - That's why I never watch Shakespeare or Agatha Christie. That's why I didn't go see Lord of the Rings or the Harry Potter movies or The Godfather trilogy.

I have to stop myself from listing any more because the point I am making is so good that I will literally be all day today and probably for the next few months just listing films and plays, etc. It'd probably be like a decade long project just to make a list like that. That's how good my point is.
Origame
Origame - 6/22/2023, 8:54 AM
@Variant -...how can they maintain the essence of the characters and storyline when they aren't reading the comics?
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