"Captain Marvel," the upcoming twenty-first installment of the gargantuan Marvel Cinematic Universe, is only about two weeks away from its March 8 release date. The other day I was watching YouTube and an ad for the film popped up, stating its release date at the end. I was instantly taken aback by this, as I had assumed that the movie wouldn't be coming out for several more months. I thought that the hype for an inevitably-blockbusting Marvel movie that comes out in just a few weeks the film would have to be extremely high by now. Usually, around this time of a Marvel movie release, Twitter is buzzing with updates about it and fanboys everywhere won't shut up about it. So why does it feel like no one cares about this movie? The unsurprising potential answer: the power of sexism.
CBR recently reported that "Captain Marvel's" audience score on review site Rotten Tomatoes is the record lowest score for any movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The low score is attributed to numerous fake and negative reviews made by non-critics who posted their reviews before the movie has even been released. Male comic book fans who are butthurt over a strong female figure getting her own superhero movie are tarnishing a film that they haven't even seen yet. Perhaps the prevalence of sexism within the superhero fanbase is also the reason for the lack of excitement around the release of the film.
"Captain Marvel" will be the first MCU film with a solo female lead, which is a huge landmark for a series that has been previously criticized for lacking diversity. The actress portraying the titular heroine, Brie Larson, is an outspoken feminist who has pointed out the lack of diverse characters in Hollywood on several occasions. Larson's views have also ignited hate from the embittered incel internet trolls who blame all of the world's problems on women. They view a female-lead movie as a threat to the supremacy of men in Hollywood and are afraid of women taking over everything they hold dear.
Yes, it is 2019 and progress has been made in the larger inclusion of women in the film industry. However, the sexist roots of the industry continue to hurt actresses' chances of success in major Hollywood films. Obviously, this movie will still make millions of dollars and further feed into the cash pile that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unfortunately, this film may prove to not be as successful as Marvel's previous efforts simply because it is led by an empowered woman. Strong women make weak men scared, as evidenced by the flood of sexist backlash. Perhaps Captain Marvel is the kind of superhero we need, one that makes herself known to the world despite the downpour of sexism brought upon her. I can only hope that everyone gives her the chance to shine.
