Marvel has been expanding in terms of the diverse characters they’re presenting on-screen, including the recent introduction of She-Hulk on Disney+.
The series focuses on Jennifer Walters, an attorney who also has the alter-ego of She-Hulk, a large, powerful, and superhuman capable of impressive feats and heroics. The muscular hero stands 6-foot-7 and is green, just like her famous cousin, the Incredible Hulk.
Actress Tatiana Maslany stars as Walters, aka She-Hulk, and recently spoke about how the superhero she plays for the Disney+ series presents a unique body type compared to other superheroes in the MCU.
“I think that there’s a cultural obsession with the certain physique that goes along with these movies sometimes,” she told Entertainment Tonight. “I certainly fell prey to that idea, and I definitely don’t think it’s a thing that we should be pursuing ’cause it’s just these weird standards that none of us can actually keep up with unless we’re going to the gym 1,000 times a week.”
The 36-year-old Maslany also said she loves how the She-Hulk character “represents a different body and a different perception from the outside.”
“How people see her is so much a part of her story … That to me is a really exciting conversation that can happen around this, like, how do we look at someone differently depending on the body that they inhabit?” Maslany said.
Maslany spoke about body-shaming before
In 2016, Tatiana Maslany starred in the critically-acclaimed show Orphan Black, for which she won an Emmy. Back then, she spoke with Elle about how unnecessary she felt body-shaming was and said she’ll never understand why it happens so much.
“I go to a spa in L.A. sometimes, a Korean day spa, and all the women there are nude. And I’ve never felt so in love with the human form as when I’m walking around and seeing all those bodies, thinking, ‘Oh my god, we’re all just built so differently.’ And every single body is beautiful,” she said.
Maslany said she doesn’t “understand that shame, and the reinforcement of that shame,” also mentioning celebrities who are shamed for sharing nude or topless photos of themselves.
“A body is just a body. But we’re really afraid of bodies. They hold a lot of power — I think that’s why people can try to shame them so easily, because they are so powerful,” Maslany told Elle.
Maslany’s She-Hulk receiving positive reviews
Tatiana Maslany’s superhero officially arrived on-screen in Disney+’s premiere of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law on Thursday, August 18. So far, the overall reception for Maslany’s new show has been positive. The Rotten Tomatoes website has an aggregate review score of 87 percent based on 310 critics’ reviews.
More than a few positive reviews praised Maslany as the title character, including FlickDirect’s Allison Rose, who said the lead actress “offers just the right combination of smarts and sassiness to make Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk fierce yet likable.”
“Maslany… is more than capable of carrying off She-Hulk’s blend of girl power drama and superhero adventure,” wrote UK Daily Telegraph’s Ed Power, in another positive review of the series.
Maslany seems to be perfect for the role based on many of the glowing reviews. The series, which brings a sitcom-style show to Marvel, examines her everyday character, Jennifer Walters, coming to grips with her insecurities as the She-Hulk superhero and not necessarily wanting those complications impacting her life.
“She’s very self-deprecating. She’s kind of got this superhero thing on top of her, but she’s a very insecure person who is obsessed with her job and trying to pretend she’s not a superhero,” Maslany said.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law episodes arrive Thursdays on Disney+.