Muslim and Indian directors will bring Marvel’s first Muslim superhero to television

Marvel recruited an all-star team of directing talent to look after its first Muslim superhero franchise, Ms. Marvel – aka Kamala Khan.

Disney tapped Pakistani director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah, and Meera Menon to be in charge of the character’s first live-action debut on streaming platform Disney Plus.

El Arbi and Fallah might be familiar as they were both behind the wildly successful Bad Boys for Life movie, starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence.

Pakistani director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy for Ms Marvel

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is a Canadian-Pakistani filmmaker with two Oscars both in short documentaries. Meanwhile, Meer Menon has directed episodes of The Magicians, The Walking Dead and the Man in the High Castle.

Those four directors will help head writer Bisha K. Ali in shaping the identity of Kamala Khan, who became the first Muslim superhero in the Marvel Universe back in 2014.

Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah for Ms marvel

So far, the character has her own book, and appears in the new Marvel Avenger’s video game as one of the main protagonists. However, this will be the first time she has been seen on television screens.

It’s fitting then that her first time appearing onscreen will be thanks to people with background similar to Kamala.

Not much is known about when the series will arrive on the streaming platform. Disney Plus has been marred by production delays due to the global pandemic. What with previously schedules shows such as WandaVision and Falcon and The Winter Soldier delayed six and nine months respectively, we’d say the earliest to expect a Ms. Marvel series would be late 2021.


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