Credit: MarvelBoth Disney and Marvel are currently going through some choppy waters, and it’s going to be a steep incline before things get significantly better. As much as there is to look forward to from both studios, there are definitely some shady deals going on behind the scenes.
Marvel Studios has severed ties with some of its main players, including WandaVision star Elizabeth Olsen and even Iron Man’s Robert Downey Jr., but down hardly ever means out as far as superheroes are concerned. They don’t need to be entirely on screen to be present, they just need to be in the suits.
Marvel Replaces Their Faces
Movies have pulled some ludicrous yet fascinating stunts to get around the need for certain characters or actors, but things get a little more interesting when superheroes and sci-fi get thrown into the mix. While Marvel fans love Tom Holland and Robert Downey Jr. as actors, it’s Spider-Man and Iron Man that get them to the theaters.
Related: Marvel Cancels Wanda, but Not Vision
A recent post on r/MarvelStudios brought up a very telling phenomenon that began in The Mandalorian on Disney+, but is slowly working its way to the MCU.
Believing viewers can expect more masked characters in the future, u/ArchdruidHalsin writes,
“This is something I’ve been considering specifically for Tom Holland but it could also wind up being true for other characters with secret identities. At this point, the characters, even fully costumed are the box office draws. Even moreso than the stars. Even the Mandalorian proves this.”
“In order to keep their actors happy in the long term, they may just hide their faces more. Then they can be more flexible on what is voiceover work and what is actually needed on set. Keeps production costs down, doesn’t impact the box office, and frees the actors up to do other work while still getting a good and steady paycheck…”
At first, this sounds like the typical fan theory from a very vocal fanbase. However, when the user mentions the practice done in the last season of The Mandalorian, a foundation begins to form. The mask/helmet has become more recognizable than the actor’s face, and it’s beginning to have lasting effects.
u/Gasparde responds with a very solid point when they add,
“Nothing’s more immersion breaking than regular a** human Tony Stark or Scott Lang constantly flipping back their helmets in the middle of giant battles just so that we can get to see RDJ or Rudd’s faces.”
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On the other side of the fence, the argument has been made that most of the studio’s heroes don’t need masks to identify themselves or further their narratives and that what the original post suggest is highly unlike the studio.
u/TowelFine6933 writes,
“That is pretty opposed to the Marvel universe. I once read about the difference between DC and Marvel: DC is about superheroes who have alternate identities as regular people. Marvel is about regular people who have alternate identities as superheroes.”
The same user later goes on to add,
“It’s not really about the secret identity, tho. In the MCU the secret identity ones are still about the person, not the superhero. Matt Murdock dresses up & fights baddies as Daredevil. Peter/Spidey and Kamala/Ms. Marvel are the same. The focus is on the person being a superhero, not the superhero being a person.”
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