It’s 2025, and we’re still talking about the sexist backlash to Captain Marvel. Brie Larson was cast as the MCU’s very first leading heroine way back in 2016, and somehow the casting of an Oscar-winning actress in literally the lone female-led Marvel movie around at the time quickly became a lightning rod for insecure men everywhere. Despite the resulting 2019 film making over $1 billion at the box office, the online criticism the star and the character have faced has remained the biggest talking point of conversation.
Sure, 2023 sequel The Marvels tragically crashed and burned, earning just a fifth of its predecessor’s total gross globally, but that likely speaks to general superhero and Marvel burnout rather than the negligible power of X users with Joker avatars spamming social media with complaints about the “M-She-U.” Nevertheless, almost a decade later, Larson is still being quizzed on why so many “fans” didn’t like her casting, as if it’s something she ever had any control over in the first place.
Brie Larson interview turns awkward when she’s asked why some men hate Captain Marvel

In an interview with The Telegraph to promote her West End debut in a new stage production of Elektra (no, not the Daredevil character), Larson was asked by journalist Claire Allfree why some men felt threatened by her casting as the MCU’s Carol Danvers. The actress was clearly reluctant to go down this road, as she is noted to have “blankly” replied “I don’t know. I… don’t pay attention.”
When Allfree pressed the matter further, Larson responded, “What I would like you to see is that by continuing this conversation, you are putting me in connection with something that has nothing to do with me.”
Not taking no for an answer, Allfree then questioned Larson on whether she thinks female superheroes like Captain Marvel were viewed as “aberrations” by certain male audiences due to the “pigeonholing” of actresses in Hollywood. Once again, Larson wouldn’t budge: “I don’t think there is a way for me to answer that without it becoming a problem for me,” she declared.
Somehow not taking the hint yet, Allfree tried to probe further, causing Larson’s publicist to intervene and request that the interviewer move onto a different line of questioning. Honestly, Larson’s decision not to engage with this toxic conversation is likely the best tack to take. If you go back far enough, it was the actress’ comments about wanting more non-male critics and press junket journalists that kicked off the backlash in the first place, so she’s right when she implies that anything she says will be used against her.
It’s no surprise, then, that Larson seems to have grown weary of offering her opinions in interviews. In the same chat, Allfree notes that the 35-year-old appeared “unwilling to engage” on the topic of sexism in the acting industry. “I don’t feel that everything I’m saying is a stance,” was what Larson did say. “There are times that I speak out and there are times when I don’t.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Larson speaks about how much Carol means to her — referencing how she has brought Danvers’ “agency, her sense of self” into her everyday life — so her reluctance to talk about the negative parts of playing the character doesn’t necessarily mean she’s putting the role behind her. Whether she returns for Avengers: Doomsday and/or Secret Wars or not, though, (and we hope she does), can we all agree to stop asking Larson the same question? It’s hardly fair that while other Marvel heroes get such descriptors as “amazing” and “incredible” in front of their names, it’s always the Controversial Captain Marvel.
Published: Feb 3, 2025 10:52 am