While the Skrulls play a vital role in Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's Captain Marvel, their role in the marketing has not been significant so far. Sure, they've shown up a few times, but there's been only one line of dialogue, and it wasn't until last night that it was even mentioned they shapeshift. We have a clear idea of what's going on with the titular hero, but not much about the villains she is facing down. Fortunately, Ben Mendelsohn delivered everything you need to know about the alien villains from the upcoming blockbuster in a single, perfect quote last year, and we can share it with you now:
I'm Talos. I'm the battle commander of the Skrulls. I take it most of you know who Skrulls are? We kind of rule the shit. Most of the rest of the Marvel comic universe are punks basically. And I guess to quote Snoop Dogg, 'We are the shiznit.' We stand above. I mean, look, we can be anyone, and we're stronger than the rest of them. Basically that's it. Yeah, we're maligned, we're misunderstood. But, you know, we're Skrulls. We're Skrullin. Any other questions?
This epic bit of philosophizing about the Skrulls role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was delivered on set last year as Ben Mendelsohn sat down to talk about the movie with a group of reporters invited to visit the production -- a group of which I was part. The actor was in full makeup for the interview, and while sort of weaving in and out of character he had a blast answering questions, starting with the above perfect response to the basic question "What is your role in the movie?"
If Ben Mendelsohn's quote isn't quite sufficient for you in explaining who the Skrulls are, their story begins in the pages of Marvel Comics from the early 1960s -- where they were introduced as a recurring extraterrestrial foe for the Fantastic Four. Their role in the universe eventually expanded, and they eventually became a problem for many of all of the heroes given their very special skill: they have the ability to transform into anything.
They are introduced in Captain Marvel because while they have a lot of enemies around the universe, their greatest foes are the Kree -- a species of which the lead character is a part at the start of the film. They have been fighting a war for centuries known as the Kree-Skrull War, and it's in the midst of the conflict that Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) will begin to remember some very important parts of her past.
Sadly the actors and filmmakers were very tight-lipped when it came to discussing the relationship between Talos and Captain Marvel, and the plans that the Skrulls have on Earth in the movie. However, producer Jonathan Schwartz did heap praise on the work Ben Mendelsohn does in the film and the fun that comes as a result of his character's ability to transform. Said the filmmaker,
Ben kind of plays the face of the Skrulls, the leader of the Skrulls, and that's Talos. Over the course of the movie he'll shapeshift a little bit, so we'll get to see him in human form... I think it's sort of fun to show off both the Skrulls powers and Ben's range as an actor because he's very different in all of those parts. It's been super fun to watch.
Starring Brie Larson, Ben Mendelsohn, Samuel L. Jackson, Djimon Hounsou, Lee Pace, Lashana Lynch, Gemma Chan, Annette Bening, Clark Gregg, and Jude Law, Captain Marvel is getting closer and closer to its highly anticipated release. The blockbuster is scheduled to arrive in theaters on March 8th, and between now and then we'll have a ton more coverage coming your way from our time on set.
