FILM · 2019 · USA
Captain Marvel
- Directed by
- Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden
- Runtime
- 124 min
- Studio
- Marvel Studios
173 archived facts 8 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
The story follows Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
173 Interesting Facts About Captain Marvel
Interesting Facts (145)
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The character Vers cuts up in the Blockbuster Video store was originally supposed to be from The Mask (1994); Vers mistook the green face for a Skrull, but the producers could not obtain the rights from Warner Bros., which held the film's distribution rights and was also the rival company of Walt Disney Pictures. Harry Tasker (Arnold Schwarzenegger) from True Lies (1994) was chosen instead.
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(At around 30 minutes) When Stan Lee makes his cameo, he is seen reading the script of Kevin Smith's Mallrats (1995) and reciting the line "Trust me true believer." As explained on Smith's YouTube page, Stan's health was declining and he could not muster his usual enthusiasm, so the producers used unused audio of Lee from Mallrats.
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(At around 1 hour 55 minutes) When Larson came to the set to shoot the post-credits scene, she was given a redacted script page in which everything except her own line was blacked out. No other actors were present. The crew could not even tell her who she was talking to. The other actors filmed their parts separately. Brie Larson was later digitally inserted into the scene.
- #005
(At around 1 hour 30 minutes) Nick Fury tells Goose, "I'm trusting you not to eat me," toward the end of the film. Shortly afterward, Goose scratches Fury and ultimately causes him to lose his left eye, as he is later seen with a patch over it. This is a callback to Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), in which Fury tells Captain America, "Last time I trusted someone, I lost an eye."
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Because Brie Larson is allergic to cats, the scenes featuring Goose were shot with a puppet or with computer-generated VFX.
Captain Marvel (2019): Carol Danvers / Vers / Captain MarvelImage: Wikimedia Commons · 2d Lt Jessica Cicchetto, Public domain - #008
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(At around 1 hour 17 minutes) As Monica Rambeau picks a new color for Carol Danvers's team, several references can be seen: a red and yellow suit (the colors worn by DC Comics' Captain Marvel, now known as Shazam), a black and gold suit (the colors of Carol Danvers's Ms. Marvel suit), and a white and green suit (the classic Kree armor colors from the comics).
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There were concerns that Brie Larson was too young to play the pilot. Screenwriter Nicole Perlman consulted the US Air Force, which said that someone between the ages of twenty-eight and thirty-four could be a successful pilot like Danvers.
Captain Marvel (2019): Carol Danvers / Vers / Captain MarvelImage: Wikimedia Commons · 2d Lt Jessica Cicchetto, Public domain - #014
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To prepare for the role of Captain Marvel, Brie Larson trained four hours a day for nine months, learning judo, boxing and wrestling. She also visited Nellis Air Force Base and met with active-duty airmen, including Brigadier General Jeannie Leavitt and Thunderbirds pilot Major Stephen 'Cajun' Del Bagno, who died in a crash and is honored in the film's credits. He and other members of the unit gave Brie Larson the call sign "Sparrow."
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At around 24 minutes, Pancho's Bar is a reference to Pancho Barnes, the female aviator who ran The Happy Bottom Riding Club, a hangout for test pilots at the site that would become Edwards Air Force Base in The Right Stuff (1983). While in the Blockbuster store, Vers picks up a VHS copy of The Right Stuff.
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Regarding the comics, the history of the character name and/or trademark "Captain Marvel" spans decades and at least three different publishers. The first comic book character named "Captain Marvel", introduced in late 1939 and known today as DC Comics' "Shazam!", was Fawcett Comics' flagship character. Fawcett was sued by DC in 1941, which claimed Captain Marvel infringed on Superman's copyright, and Fawcett successfully ceased publication of the character in 1953. When Fawcett's trademark on "Captain Marvel" lapsed into obscurity after more than a decade of disuse, MF Enterprises tried to introduce its own "Captain Marvel" in 1966. Marvel Comics Group/Marvel Comics responded by introducing its own "Captain Marvel" (Mar-Vell) and successfully sued MF for using the word "Marvel", whose trademark Marvel Comics held, in the title of its publications. When DC decided in 1972 to revive Fawcett's "Captain Marvel" itself, it learned that it could not use "Captain Marvel" in the comic's title because of Marvel's trademark (through Marvel's 1974 cease and desist). DC instead marketed its character under the name "Shazam!" — the name of Captain Marvel's mentor and the magic word the character uses to access his powers. For Marvel to maintain its trademark, it had to publish "Captain Marvel" comics. Marvel, for which the character was not popular or profitable, fulfilled this requirement for several years by publishing a one-off comic series. In 2012, Carol Danvers, the former "Ms. Marvel" and the main character of this film, took the title "Captain Marvel" at Marvel, while DC also decided during this period to rename its character "Shazam!". Ironically, New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment/DC Films' Shazam! (2019) was released in theaters one month after Marvel Studios' "Captain Marvel".
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The producers discussed several options for how Fury would realize that Keller is actually a Skrull named Talos, and settled on the man who refers to him as Nicholas. Anna Boden's favorite was Fury telling Keller that his shoelace is untied and Keller then having no idea how to tie the shoe.
- #026
Carol's powers came from the exploding Pegasus ship engine. We later learn that the engine was powered by the Tesseract, making Captain Marvel the first (chronologically) MCU hero whose powers derive from an Infinity Stone (the Space Stone is hidden inside it). Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch and her brother Pietro/Quicksilver would be the next two (Mind Stone), followed by Vision (also the Mind Stone).
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The Nine Inch Nails (NIN) T-shirt Carol wears is a bootleg. According to the band's former art director Rob Sheridan, the rectangle surrounding the NIN logo should be the same width as the typography in the logo. Marvel later contacted Nine Inch Nails and an official NIN T-shirt was released in commemoration of Captain Marvel.
- #029
Goose has human-level intelligence (she is an alien species known as a Flerken). Her most notable trait is a clear sense of right and wrong. She warms easily to both Carol and Fury, seeing their innate goodness beyond their tough exteriors. She also purrs and rubs against Talos's leg while the heroes (and the audience) still believe the Skrulls are the villains. In the end, she was able to recognize the Skrulls disguised as Kree soldiers on Mar-Vell's ship.
- #030
At around 38 minutes, Carol Danvers visits a bar called Pancho's, where she has flashbacks to her previous life on Earth as a test pilot for the Air Force. Named after Pancho's Happy Bottom Riding Club, Pancho's Bar was a real bar/ranch/hotel located near Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave desert in the 1940s. It once hosted many famous test pilots such as Chuck Yeager, Bob Hoover, Jack Ridley, James Doolittle and Buzz Aldrin. It was owned by the female aviation pioneer Pancho Barnes. She was an air race pilot and Hollywood stunt pilot, and even replaced Amelia Earhart as the holder of the highest speed record. There is no doubt that this reference is a double nod to Pancho Barnes's pioneering contributions to women in aviation and her connection to the Edwards test pilot community.
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Throughout the history of Marvel Comics Group/Marvel Comics, eight different characters have taken the name "Captain Marvel." This movie features three of them: Carol Danvers (the most famous version, previously known as Ms Marvel), Mar-Vell (the original version, a Kree alien and superhero), and Monica Rambeau (who briefly carried the title of Captain Marvel).
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Because Brie Larson had previously spoken out about the inadequate representation of women, Black people and disabled people among journalists and film critics, many internet users reacted aggressively to the perception of the film as a "feminist agenda and political correctness." This led to a large number of negative ratings on many review sites (including IMDb) weeks before the film's release. As a result, Rotten Tomatoes changed its policy so that it would no longer accept reviews and ratings for a film that had not yet been released.
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The film is based on Captain Marvel/Ms. Marvel. Carol Danvers is a pilot who gains her superpowers during an incident involving an alien ship, but her origin draws on the alien Captain Marvels Walter Lawson/Mar-Vell and Khn'nr. Both Kree and Skrull soldiers come to Earth, and she decides to defend it. Moreover, the tampering with Khn'nr's memory causes him to suffer the same identity crisis Carol experiences in this film.
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In the comics, Mar-Vell was a male Kree caught in an explosion while saving Carol Danvers, and the blast transferred his powers to her by imprinting his DNA onto hers. In the film this changed somewhat, with Mar-Vell being a female Kree who built the core that gave Carol her powers when it exploded. This marks the fourth time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that a character portrayed in a film or TV series is the opposite gender of the character's original comics version. The first was Jeri Hogarth in Jessica Jones (2015), the second was the Ancient One in Doctor Strange (2016), and the third was Ghost in Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018).
- #059
In the film, Nick Fury loses his eye when Goose scratches his face. In the comics, he loses it during World War II when he catches a live grenade and immediately throws it; a piece of shrapnel from the explosion lodged in his eye. Fury decides against surgery to repair it and wears a patch instead.
- #060
At roughly 1 hour 45 minutes, Monica Rambeau talks about building a spaceship and flying into space. Fury says she should glow like her Aunt Carol. This may foreshadow the story of a future Captain Marvel film. In the comics, Monica grows up, is charged by rays from space, and can fly at the speed of light.
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The Kree control disk on Vers's neck also appears in season 5 of Agents of SHIELD, which deals with the remnants of a shepherd humanity under Kree control in an alternate future. A similar device used by the character The Controller, who at one point served as Thanos's agent, also appeared in the comics.
- #073
At around the 43rd minute, Nick Fury's ID card shows his birthday as July 4, 1950, which makes him 45 years old in this film. In real life, Samuel L. Jackson was born on December 21, 1948.
Captain Marvel (2019): Nick FuryImage: Wikimedia Commons · DoD photo by Shannon Collins, Public domain - #074
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In the film, Mar-Vell is killed by Yon-Rogg while the destruction of an experimental engine powered by the Tesseract causes Danvers to gain cosmic powers. In the comics, Danvers got her powers from a similar event, a fight between Yon-Rogg and Mar-Vell, only then Mar-Vell survived and it was an alien device that grants superpowers.
- #081
At around 1 hour 35 minutes, Ryan Fleck says of the fight scene, "We went through so many songs that we experimented with for this sequence," before they finally scored with No Doubt's "Just a Girl." They looked at tracks from the '60s, '70s and '80s but ultimately decided to go with the obvious choice.
- #082
In keeping with the period in which the film is set, the action draws inspiration from many 1990s action films. For example, Vers's argument with Yon-Rogg and her meeting with the Supreme Intelligence in a giant simulation recall scenes from The Matrix (1999); the scene where Vers can board a moving train recalls the finale of Speed (1994), while the dogfight in the canyon at the end is almost a shot-for-shot homage to a similar scene in Independence Day (1996).
- #083
Contrary to popular belief, Fury did not "lose" his eye as shown in Winter Soldier. That is why he never replaces it with the fake glass in the bag Coulson gives him. As a former spy, he is trained in keeping secrets, and as Fury says to Pierce in Winter Soldier, "if you want to be in front of me, you have to keep BOTH eyes open." Also, rumors that Fury's eye was burned out by the Kree are a new addition to Fury's mystery and legend, far less embarrassing than having his eye scratched by an alien creature in the form of an Earth cat.
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While this is not the first film to feature a female superhero, it is the first written primarily by women. Supergirl (1984), Catwoman (2004), Elektra (2005) and Wonder Woman (2017) were all written by men. The closest case was Catwoman (2004), which gave Theresa Rebeck a writing credit, but that film also had three male writers.
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Carol Danvers, played by Brie Larson, returns to her time at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) in Colorado Springs, CO. In the second half of the six-week Basic Cadet Training (BCT), or "2nd Beast," she appears to climb/jump/swing on ropes at the Confidence Course in Jacks Valley, directed by a cadet upper-class officer, a Cadet First Class or "Firstie." The Basic Cadet uniform Danvers wears is accurate except for the PC (Physical Conditioning) shirt with her surname on it. Basic Cadets generally have to hand-write their surnames on the USAFA shirt in black Sharpie, because a typed print is considered a privilege granted as an upper-class cadet.
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At roughly 38 minutes in, while Vers/Captain Marvel looks around the bar and recalls her past experiences there, she notices an arcade cabinet for the video game Street Fighter. Since the 1996 release of X-Men vs. Street Fighter, a year after the year in which this film is set, Capcom has released fighting video games pitting its characters against Marvel Comics superheroes. Captain Marvel, however, did not appear in any of them until Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (2017).
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At roughly 1 hour 16 minutes in, Monica scolds her mother for not wanting to fly a suicide mission against a technically more advanced alien power, and asks whether she would rather stay home and watch The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990). When Monica helps Carol redesign her uniform, she describes Carol's new look as "Fresh." Akira Akbar, who plays Monica here, played Ashley Banks in the rebooted Bel-Air (2022).
- #097
At roughly 23 minutes in, the VHS tapes on the shelf include Hook (1991), First Knight (1995), Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986), Junior (1994) and Just Cause (1995). The film she examines is The Right Stuff (1983), about test pilots who join the space program. Among the aircraft tested was the Lockheed F-104, which could fly from the ground to the edge of the atmosphere. Danvers's suppressed memories concern her being a test pilot who took an experimental aircraft and flew it from the ground to the edge of the atmosphere.
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A kissing scene between Carol (Brie Larson) and Yon-Rogg (Jude Law) was filmed but later cut because the writers felt it would be demeaning to a strong character like Carol Danvers. There were also concerns about whether it would glorify workplace sexual assault. However, one line from the scene ("You kiss like a horse") was kept in the film and can be heard when Carol is sent into a memory trans by the Supreme Intelligence (Annette Bening).
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This is the second Marvel film to feature a main character (hero/antagonist) who is a US service academy graduate, but the first to explicitly show that character's time as a student/soldier on screen. While Erik Killmonger's time at the United States Naval Academy is only mentioned in Black Panther (2018), which reveals he was commissioned from Annapolis at age 19 (possibly as a US Navy SEAL officer), this film includes a clip of Carol Danvers attempting an obstacle course as a Basic Student at the United States Air Force Academy during Second Beast (the pre-Fall term basic training camp for first-year students). It is also worth noting that James Rhodes (War Machine) is known to wear a USAFA graduation ring on one of his fingers, so she is not the first Air Force graduate to grace the MCU screen.
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Yon-Rogg is the 5th MCU villain to be revealed through a plot twist following Aldrich Killian from Iron Man 3 (2013), The Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes & Alexander Pierce from Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) and Ego from Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (2017). All other villains were either building up their intentions as a villain or were clearly evil from their first appearance.
- #115
(Around 1 hour 23 minutes) When Captain Marvel and her allies explore Dr. Lawson's (Annette Bening) laboratory, there is a sticky note on the computer monitor that reads "What planet are you from?", which is also the title of a 2000 film starring Bening and the late MCU alumnus Garry Shandling (who also appeared in Iron Man 2 (2010) and Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)).
- #116
In the scene where Carol (Brie Larson) confronts the Supreme Intelligence (Annette Bening), Nirvana's song 'Come As You Are' can be heard from a record player. The single premiered in 1991 on the album 'Nevermind'; since Carol was abducted by the Kree in 1989, she would never have even heard of it.
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When Vers is impressed by Fury using a piece of tape to lift the security guard's fingerprint off a SHIELD badge, Fury says, "You should see what I can do with a paperclip." This relates to Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), in which Project Insight was made possible by Dr. Arnim Zola being brought to the United States as a fictional part of the real-world "Operation Paperclip," which brought prominent German scientists to the US to work on projects such as the space program and the nuclear energy and weapons program.
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Gemma Chan is the tenth actor from Doctor Who (2005) to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following Toby Jones (Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)), Talulah Riley (Thor: The Dark World (2013)), Jenna Coleman and David Bradley (Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)), Christopher Eccleston (Thor: The Dark World (2013)), Tony Curran (Thor: The Dark World (2013)), Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019)), Peter Serafinowicz (Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)) and Riann Steele (Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)).
Captain Marvel (2019): Minn-erva and Carol Danvers / Vers / Captain MarvelImage: Wikimedia Commons · DOD photo by Shannon Collins, Public domain - #120
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(At around 1 hour 16 minutes) Monica scolds her mother for not wanting to fly a suicide mission against a technically superior alien force, and asks whether she would rather stay home and watch The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990). The Fresh Prince's lead character is played by Will Smith, who would fly a suicide mission against a technically superior alien force as Captain Hiller in Independence Day (1996). When Monica helps Carol redesign her uniform, she describes Carol's new look as "Fresh." Independence Day, and also notes that it stars Jeff Goldblum, who appears as the Grandmaster in Thor: Ragnarok (2017).
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Gemma Chan is the eleventh actor from the "Transformers" films (having previously played Quintessa) to appear in a Marvel superhero film, after Rachael Taylor (Maggie Madsen, Trish Walker), Hugo Weaving (Megatron, Red Skull), Kelsey Grammer (Harold Attinger, Beast), Titus Welliver (James Savoy, Felix Blake), Nicola Peltz Beckham (Tessa, Jane), Stanley Tucci (Joshua Joyce/Merlin, Abraham Erskine), Laura Haddock (Vivian Wembley, Meredith Quill), Omar Sy (Hot Rod, Bishop), Sir Anthony Hopkins (Sir Edmund Burton, Odin) and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (Memo, Jason Ionello).
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Production Story (1)
Behind the Scenes (4)
Characters & Cast (12)
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Jude Law received advice about taking a role in this film from Robert Downey Jr., the star of Sherlock Holmes (2009), who plays Iron Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Law said: "He talked a bit about how making a Marvel Cinematic Universe film fits this one piece into a bigger picture, and about surrendering yourself to it. It's not about trying to understand everything. Just do your part."
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This film marked Jude Law's first appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the Kree Yon-Rogg. Law had previously played Dr. John Watson in Sherlock Holmes (2009), alongside Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes and Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler. Downey Jr. is also part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe cast and has played Tony Stark since his role in Iron Man (2008); Rachel McAdams is part of the MCU as Dr. Christine Palmer in Doctor Strange (2016). The MCU cast now also includes Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch, who played Watson and Holmes in Sherlock (2010).
- #156
Joss Whedon initially considered adding Captain Marvel to the end of Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) but could not find the right actress in time. He used a stunt double for the role, but later digitally added Elizabeth Olsen's face and turned her into Scarlet Witch. Future Captain Marvel actress Brie Larson was still a weak actress at the time the film was released.
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This film adds the seventh and eighth actors from the Sherlock Holmes series to the MCU: Jude Law and Gemma Chan. Law joined his own Sherlock, Robert Downey Jr.; Chan played Soo Lin Yao in The Blind Banker (2010) alongside her co-stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. John C. Reilly appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and Holmes & Watson (2018). Rachel McAdams (from Doctor Strange (2016)) was also part of Robert Downey Jr.'s Sherlock Holmes series. Sir Ben Kingsley played the more intelligent Dr. Watson in Without a Clue (1988).
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Easter Eggs & References (5)
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The battle helmet Captain Marvel wears during her missions and in space is a nod to the original character. The helmet features the iconic mohawk haircut Captain Marvel is often depicted with in the comics. There was some debate among fans about Brie Larson's hairstyle; many fans argued it was too long and did not resemble the usual short hairstyle Captain Marvel wears in the comics closely enough.
- #164
This is the second MCU film since Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) to carry Pulp Fiction (1994) references. In this film there is a shot of Phil Coulson and Nick Fury in a car, the same shot John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson had; the cup Talos sips from is a nod to Pulp Fiction (1994), in which Jackson's character Jules Winfield borrows a cup to wash down his burger. The opening of the glowing lunchbox also references the briefcase. In CA: TWS, Nick Fury's gravestone bears the inscription "The path of the righteous man Ezekiel 25:17," which Winfield reads in Pulp Fiction.
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Deeper Meaning (2)
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At roughly 1 hour 27 minutes, when Vers (Brie Larson) confronts the Supreme Intelligence (Annette Bening), the use of Nirvana's "Come As You Are" carries multiple associations as memories are discussed, something Vers gradually regains over the course of the film. The song's title matches the Supreme Intelligence finally revealing itself as it truly is, in this case not a "friend" but an "unknown enemy." It is also the only 90s song used in the film sung by a man; all the other songs are sung by women. The use of this song in this scene represents Captain Marvel's (temporary) weakness at the hands of the Supreme Intelligence. When she becomes aware of her power and destroys the inhibitor device, No Doubt's "I'm Just A Girl" begins to play.
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Vers is punished for using a pulse blast during a martial arts sparring match, and while teaching someone to control their power and know when to use it seems entirely reasonable, Yon-Rogg doing so carries a negative connotation here. It is a complicated idea: the big reveal later shows that the Kree were trying to limit her, meaning this attempt at control is a bad thing, yet the idea itself remains a responsible one that we teach our children every day.
Career & Awards (3)
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Brie Larson became the second Oscar winner to play a lead character in an MCU film, after Robert Downey Jr. in the Iron Man trilogy. Because Downey did not win until Oppenheimer (2023), however, Larson was the first to win before joining the MCU. Four nominees have also played title characters: Edward Norton in The Incredible Hulk (2008); Benedict Cumberbatch in Doctor Strange (2016) and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022); Chadwick Boseman in Black Panther (2018); and Scarlett Johansson in Black Widow (2021).
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Life & Family (1)
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Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury) and Clark Gregg (Phil Coulson) were digitally de-aged so their characters would look like their younger selves, since the film is set in 1995. This was the first time Marvel Studios de-aged characters for an entire film; it had used the tactic before in Ant-Man (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (2017) and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018), but only for flashback scenes. They did the same for Tony Stark when he presents at a university with his family shortly before his death.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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