Terrified Ms. Marvel Is the Best Part of ‘The Marvels’ Teaser Trailer

UPDATE: This article was originally published on September 13, 2022 after The Marvels teaser was screened at Disney’s D23 Expo. It’s been updated now that the teaser has been released to the public.

The teaser for The Marvels is finally out! This sequel to Captain Marvel, which stars Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau, and Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan, will revolve around the three superheroes discovering that they can use their powers to switch places with each other.

There’s obviously a lot of comedic potential to a premise like that, but for me, the best part of the teaser is Kamala’s absolutely terrified, omg-wtf-I’m-shitting-myself-right-now reactions to the bonkers situations she finds herself in. It looks like her transition from neighborhood superhero to cosmic marvel is going to be rough.

The Marvels teaser trailer

I first saw the teaser at Disney’s D23 Expo, where it was screened for attendees. Now it’s finally been released to the public!

One of the teaser’s first shots is of Monica in a spacesuit, doing a spacewalk near the S.A.B.E.R. Space Station, which has Nick Fury on board. Monica is heading out to inspect a jump point (that is, a spot where spacecraft can warp) above Earth, when she gets blown back by an energy burst. We hear panicked screaming coming from inside the suit, and when it gets close enough to the glass that Fury can see who’s inside it, we see that Monica has been replaced by poor Kamala, who’s having a level 10 meltdown at her bizarre predicament. That is, until she recognizes Nick Fury and wonders if she’s being tested to join the Avengers.

The teaser promises a lot of other great moments in the movie, including Zawe Ashton’s villain and a tense meeting between Carol, Monica, and Kamala’s family, but the scene that’s been living in my brain ever since last September is Kamala’s first encounter with Goose. Goose, who looks like an orange tabby cat, made his first appearance in Captain Marvel, which revealed that he’s actually an alien creature called a flerken. What’s the difference between a flerken and a cat? Well, cats don’t usually grow horrifying tentacled maws capable of swallowing everything in sight.

Goose is a lot to take in if you’re not prepared ahead of time, and that’s exactly what happens to Kamala. In the Marvels teaser, we see Kamala and Goose in the hallway of what looks like a spaceship. Some Kree soldiers come at them, and Goose promptly flerkens out and gobbles them up. Cut to Kamala, who has become a quivering pile of goo on the floor, screaming and sobbing as she tries to process what she just saw. The only words she’s able to get out are “Oh my god!“

Kamala is new to space adventuring

I don’t want to give the impression that Kamala spends the whole trailer screaming, because she some badass moments, too. But scenes where she’s terrified highlight one of the most endearing aspects of her character: She’s brand new to all this superhero stuff.

In Ms. Marvel, the Disney+ series that introduced her, she doesn’t even get her costume and catchphrase until the very last episode. Kamala barely has time to catch a breath before she’s whisked into space at the end of the series finale, so it’s only natural that she’s fumbling her way through a very confusing, very stressful series of events in the movie. Carol has been a superhero for decades, and Monica was already a S.W.O.R.D. agent before she got her powers, but Kamala is just a wee BB bean in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Kamala’s charm is also a testament to Iman Vellani’s charisma and acting skills. Vellani was an absolute delight when she took the stage at D23, joking that she was having trouble breathing as the crowd cheered for her. Check out this adorable interview she gave just after the presentation ended:

Remember when we all found out that Vellani made a Ms. Marvel costume years before she ever auditioned for the role? Vellani has demonstrated that she doesn’t just love Kamala—she understands this character inside and out, and that understanding allows her to infuse Kamala with amazing depth and magnetism. Iman Vellani is Kamala Khan, and her journey, as the MCU continues into its Phase 5 and beyond, is going to be a joy to watch.

Given the combined talents of Vellani, Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, and Zawe Ashton, The Marvels is shaping up to be a lot of fun. I, for one, can’t wait to see Kamala find her footing in the cosmos and enter the next phase of her life as a superhero.

(featured image: Marvel)