Captain Marvel is Now Being Scripted by Tomb Raider Writer

The Captain Marvel solo film has gotten a new screenwriter. Few of Marvel Studios’ upcoming titles are facing the same kind of expectations that Captain Marvel is. After all, not only will the film finally bring fan-favorite Carol Danvers into the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the first time, but it will also be the first female superhero-led Marvel Studios movie. Similar to next year’s Black Panther, the solo film will have to both pay the appropriate amount of respect to a long-awaited comic book character and be another successful step forward in diversifying the lineup of characters/franchises in the MCU.

Fortunately, the Captain Marvel project is off to a good start so far, beginning with the casting of Brie Larson as Carol Danvers during Marvel’s Hall H presentation at last year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Earlier this year, the studio finally nailed down more of the project’s creative team with the hiring of filmmakers Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden as the Captain Marvel directors. After proving themselves with critically-acclaimed indie titles like Half Nelson and Mississippi Grind, this will be the duo’s first foray into the blockbuster world.

However, Captain Marvel has just undergone some unexpected behind-the-scenes creative changes. Deadline is reporting that screenwriter Geneva Robertson-Dworet has officially been hired to write the script for the Marvel film. She will be replacing original screenwriters Nicole Perlman (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Meg LeFauve (Inside Out). There’s no telling how this may or may not affect the film’s development process, but as of right now, Captain Marvel is expected to begin filming sometime in February of next year.

Originally, LeFauve and Perlman had been hired to co-write the script for Captain Marvel, but LeFauve eventually had to leave the project in order to co-direct Disney Animation’s Gigantic. However, as far as fans were concerned, it looked as though Marvel was still moving forward with a script at least written by Perlman, who has had a positive work relationship with the studio, dating back to her original work on the first Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s certainly possible that one of Perlman’s other commitments (she’s also working on the Detective Pikachu movie) led to her stepping away from Captain Marvel too, or that Marvel decided to go in a different direction than what LeFauve and Perlman had in mind.

Either way, this is another big get for Robertson-Dworet – a screenwriter who has been on the receiving end of some very high-profile jobs as of late. Not only is she the writer behind Warner Bros.’ upcoming Tomb Raider reboot, but she’s also currently set to write the script for DC’s Gotham City Sirens, which will be directed by David Ayer and feature the return of Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. Based on that resume alone, in addition to Marvel’s penchant for working with solid writers and directors, Robertson-Dworet’s hiring should (hopefully) only mean good things for Captain Marvel moving forward.