Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck were given some invaluable advice from other MCU directors when they started work on Captain Marvel.
Captain Marvel directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck were new to the superhero genre when they signed on for the film, and as expected, there was learning curve. Luckily, the two receieved guidance from some familiar names.
While speaking with Spot Philippines, the directing pair revealed that they spoke with a few Marvel directors before and after taking on the project. Veteran Marvel filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo were two of the people they consulted with. Boden revealed that she and Fleck visited the two on the set of Avengers: Infinity War, where they provided some advice. Fleck further explained how they helped:
"“Joe and Anthony [Russo], they were so helpful to us. They were giving us advice on things we wouldn’t even think we needed advice on. It was great, they’re great collaborators. They’ve made four of these movies now, and they’re just good guys and great directors.”"
Ryan Coogler, director of the critically acclaimed Black Panther, also offered some words of wisdom. According to Fleck, the young filmmaker gave they a key piece of advice while he and Boden were deciding if they would tackle the project:
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"“I think the best piece of advice besides [the Russo Brothers] was Ryan Coogler. When we were just starting to have conversations with Marvel — deciding if it was a fit for us, if we wanted to do this movie — he was prepping Black Panther, and we wanted his opinion on what the process was like. And he said ‘It is so challenging and so difficult that you have to make sure that you love this character and you love this story, because you’re going to be spending a lot of time with this character and story over time.’ That was great for us. We realigned how we were approaching pitching the movie to Marvel. It stopped becoming ‘What do they want to hear from us?’ We stopped trying to make the movie we thought they wanted and started pitching the movie we wanted to make.”"
Like many Marvel directors, Boden and Fleck hail from the world of indie filmmaking. Their most notable works include 2006’s Half Nelson, 2008’s Sugar and 2013’s Mississippi Grind, all critically lauded films. Despite their lack of experience with superheroes, they showed a keen interest in Carol Danvers and landed the job.
Of course, making the leap from indie films to blockbusters can understandably be difficult. In addition to working with actors, directors must also manage second-unit elements like stunt work and visual effects. Seeking out help from fellow MCU directors was a smart move on Boden and Fleck’s part.
While this is only their first foray into the world of comic books, Boden and Fleck have proven to be skilled storytellers, with a knack for handling deeply flawed characters. This is what likely attracted Marvel to them and should make Carol Danvers’ first solo outing unique. Captain Marvel soars into theaters on March 8th.