[Article] The Women That Make Up SHE-HULK
Courtesy Marvel Studios

Now with the first episodes of SHE-HULK being available on Disney+, audiences all around the world are getting a taste of what writer Jessica Gao and executive producer Kat Coiro wanted to create. According to Coiro herself it’s a show where “every episode has a distinct flavor” and despite it being labeled as a legal comedy, it also “has huge cinematic scope and elements of drama, action and suspense.”

Prior to the show’s release Nightmarish Conjurings’ took part in the global press conference featuring Gao and Coiro as well as actors Tatiana Maslany (Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk) and Ginger Gonzaga (Nikki Ramos). During the conference, these four women opened up about what SHE-HULK means to them and what it will hopefully mean to audiences who enjoy the show.

Executive producer Kat Coiro has known the character of SHE-HULK since she was young. She stated, “I remember very vividly being a little girl and seeing the cover of a She-Hulk comic amidst a sea of male comics, and not knowing who she was or what this was, but knowing that I was moved by it.” It’s that energy that Coiro brings to the show as the director of six episodes in the show’s nine-episode run and you feel it. This is a show that’s proud to have a main female lead, but also plenty of women behind the camera running the show. This is a show by women about the female experience, but it also had to be a comedy.

Jessica Gao’s background in TV comedy ranges from Rick and Morty to Silicon Valley. For her the comedy came first and when asked about writing a Marvel show she said, “It was just so lighthearted, fun, and refreshing. That was always a foundational element. Because I come from TV comedy that was a priority, but what’s great about having an incredible cast is it feels like you’re cheating a little bit as a writer. They come in and imbue this humanity and realness to these characters. I was focused on these jokes but you came in and made her a real person.”

When asked about playing the lead role of SHE-HULK, Tatiana Maslany shared her experiences saying “What is so great about the show is it has all of those huge Marvel elements to it, however we also deal with She-Hulk swipe dating. We deal with her helping her dad carry stuff into the garage. It’s those really sweet moments that really made me excited to do the show.”

(L-R): Ginger Gonzaga as Nikki Ramos and Tatiana Maslany as She-Hulk/Jennifer “Jen” Walters in Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk: Attorney At Law exclusively on Disney+. Photo by Chuck Zlotnick. © 2022 MARVEL.

Talking about Nikki Ramos, Jen Walter’s best friend, Ginger Gonzaga said, “I would hang out with Nikki in real life. Shamefully, I do feel like I’m kind of cheating on this show. I feel like Nikki is pretty similar to me. She’s very free. She’s that person who can get away with anything and encourage you to do whatever.”

The show plays off of that as well, with Nikki lifting up her friend Jen as she navigates the world with her new super strength and green skin. Gao was happy to expand on that stating, “The beauty of television, unlike with movies, is that we actually have time and space to sit with the characters and learn more about them. Tatiana was able to, from day one, make this feel like a real human being. You feel like she’s lived a life. She has relationships, family, and friends. She changes too. She might feel different in the morning than she does in the evening or today she feels different from yesterday. It’s a real person that actually feels things and processes them, and like most people, she has highs and lows.”

Beyond the new team of women to the MCU, the show does feature some familiar faces including Mark Ruffalo returning as Bruce Banner/Hulk. On her experience working with Ruffalo, Maslany said, “Mark was so open to whatever my process was. Coming into She-Hulk he never was prescriptive.”

While the show features plenty of cameos, something to definitely be excited for, Tatiana Maslany hopes that people walk away from the show thinking about it. She states, “I really hope that it’s entertaining and fun and escapist, and then after you’ve watched it, you sit down and you go “Gosh, this made me think of some things I hadn’t thought of before. It made me see things through a new lens.” because I think it’s a really fun, funny, ridiculous, awesome show that has some really deep undertones.”

SHE-HULK begins streaming August 18th on Disney+ with new episodes dropping weekly. For more on the series, check out our review here

Shannon McGrew
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