Centered around a super-powered lawyer and the more every-day side of crimefighting, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law is giving fans a look at a different corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Initially named simply She-Hulk, a trailer released in May of 2022 revealed the show's new title to be She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.
The change made sense, given Jennifer Walters' day job, but seeing an MCU project add a subtitle to a project so close to its release date was intriguing. As it turns out, the change came from Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. Speaking with Lifehacker Australia, She-Hulk head writer and showrunner Jessica Gao revealed the backstory.
As she explained, while watching footage from the series, a line delivered by Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner prompted Feige to suggest a longer title:
"We always had the line in the show where Bruce says, '"She-Hulk, Attorney at Law." It's got a nice ring to it.' And one day, we were watching cuts and when it got to that scene, Kevin just said, 'That's a great title for a show; that should be the title of the show.' And that's it. [...] You know when the golden tongue of Kevin Feige speaks, then it becomes canon and that's really how it happened."
The new title is arguably a more exciting way to sell Jennifer Walters' story. Attorney at Law hints at a focus on the legality of superhero activities—a topic often discussed among superhero fans. It's an area that hasn't been fully delved into in superhero media, especially in such an episodic manner.
Discussing her relationship with Feige during an interview with The Wrap, Gao explained what makes the Marvel Studios President so successful. The showrunner used an anecdote about her planning to wear a "Kevin Sucks" hat during SDCC 2022 to illustrate her point, describing Feige as a "great creative producer":
“I feel like that Comic-Con story really illustrates what a great creative producer Kevin is, because he goes with everything. [...] He has no ego. He's always trying to plus it. He's a great improviser, because always 'yes-and'-ing you. But not only was he going to go along with the 'Kevin Sucks' hat, but he plussed it and made it better, which is really why he is so good at what he does, because that's what he does for everything. The other thing I respect about him is he is probably one of, or if not, the most powerful man in Hollywood and he lets me bully him mercilessly like we're cousins."
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law is streaming on Disney+, with new episodes released every Thursday.