Whilst appearing on the latest episode of Animal Crossing talk show Animal Talk, actress Brie Larson, who’s best known for portraying Captain Marvel in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, expressed interest in playing the character of Samus in a potential film adaptation of the popular video game franchise Metroid.
When asked about the idea and if it could happen, she said:
“She was always my character that I played in Super Smash Bros. and I definitely [will] not put a squash to that story.”
Created by Nintendo in 1986, Metroid started out as a science fiction-themed platformer and shoot-em-up in which players can control a masked warrior armed with a laser pistol. Since its initial release, the game has spawned dozens of sequels which span virtually all generations of consoles, and together comprise one of the best-selling video game series of all time.
As a character, Samus has all the hallmarks of your typical action hero. Sporting big muscles, powerful weapons and a variety of skills, the Metroid star oozes hyper-masculinity. However when Samus takes off his helmet towards the end of the game and in doing so reveals himself to be – in fact – a woman, players’ jaws dropped.
The gender swap, which developers thought would make for an interesting plot twist as well as an effective ending to their game, has since been hailed as one of the most progressive moves in all of video game history. Nowadays, female protagonists are almost as common as male ones. From Tomb Raider to Horizon Zero Dawn, they’re everywhere. But that wasn’t always the case.
Around the time that Metroid released, Nintendo’s other popular franchises, Mario and The Legend of Zelda, featured women who were relegated to the status of damsels in distress. They were, in other words, objectives which must be reached by the player and props that had to be saved by their male avatars.
Larson has already portrayed one modern feminist icon in the form of Captain Marvel, who was the first female superhero within the MCU to receive her own standalone film. As such, she’s certainly capable of playing Samus in Metroid.