Marvel is such a huge franchise at this point that it makes sense that sometimes one actor can play multiple roles within it, and it isn’t even that uncommon. With the MCU having only started a decade and a half ago though, it is always interesting when one actor does play multiple characters, but in the case of Linda Cardellini you may not have even noticed.
The actress is best recognized in the franchise for playing the wife of Clint Barton aka. Hawkeye, Laura Barton. We were first introduced to her in Avengers: Age of Ultron when the team needed to get off the grid, where many were surprised to find that Clint had a whole family hidden from them. She has appeared since, notably in Avengers: Endgame, and in the Hawkeye series on Disney Plus. This is now no longer her only role though within the MCU as she makes an appearance, or at least her voice does, in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Cardellini is voicing one of Rocket’s old friends from way back when he was being experimented on by the High Evolutionary, Lylla the Otter. A recent clip shows Rocket and Lylla, as well as Floor the Rabbit and Teefs the Walrus, as they dream about what their future may hold while giving themselves names and laughing at themselves in what appears to be a very bleak and tear-inducing situation.
Now we know that there are many actors who have worked on multiple projects and played multiple Marvel characters, but within the history of the MCU which started back with the first Iron Man, there have also been a handful of actors that have played multiple roles in just MCU movies as well.
It works well when one actor is used in real life, as Cardellini is when playing Laura Barton, and then their voice is used attached to a CGI character. In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 this is actually the case for another actor, director James Gunn’s brother Sean Gunn, who has been doing so for some time, playing Kraglin and providing the body motion work for Rocket while Bradley Cooper provides the voice. In the third installment, they take it a step further with Gunn also providing the voice for young Rocket as well.
James Gunn gave his own examples of actors that have played more than one role within the MCU in response to a fan asking if there were more actors, like Cardellini, taking on two roles.
There are plenty of examples of actors playing more than one role within the MCU, even lead actors such as Benedict Cumberbatch who plays Doctor Strange but also provided the voice for Dormamu, and Gemma Chan who plays Sersi in Eternals and also Minerva in Captain Marvel. It would seem that once the studio gets to know what you are capable of, there is always a chance you could be called back to play another part.
You can catch Cardellini as Lylla the Otter in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 coming to theatres on May 5.
