Development Marvel Entertainment's
creative consultant Joe Quesada said in September 2016 that there were plans to explore the character of
Kamala Khan / Ms. Marvel in other media following her unusually rapid success and popularity among comic book readers.
Marvel Studios President
Kevin Feige said in May 2018 that a
Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project based on Kamala Khan was "in the works", and would follow the release of the film
Captain Marvel (2019) as Kamala is inspired by that film's title character
Carol Danvers. By August 2019, Marvel Studios had begun development on a
Ms. Marvel television series for the streaming service
Disney+, with
Bisha K. Ali hired to serve as the
head writer after working as a writer on the series
Loki. Ali had approached one of the Marvel Studios executives on
Loki, Kevin Wright, while were working on that series to get an opportunity to meet about
Ms. Marvel, and she declined an extension to continue working on
Loki in order to create her
pitch. She believed that Marvel responded to her "general vibe and energy" from the pitch, which conveyed to them that a series about Ms. Marvel was very personal to her "as a fan, as a South Asian person, as a Pakistani woman, [and] as a woman from a Muslim background".
Ms. Marvel was officially announced at the 2019
D23 conference. In September 2020,
Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (credited as Adil & Bilall) were hired to direct two episodes of the series, with
Meera Menon hired to direct one episode, and
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy hired to direct three; Menon and Obaid-Chinoy ultimately directed two episodes each. Despite their different visual styles and prior work, all of the directors worked closely together to create a "seamless transition" between their episodes. Ali, El Arbi, and Fallah serve as executive producers on the series and worked closely with Marvel Studios to develop it, with Kamala Khan co-creator
Sana Amanat also serving as an executive producer, alongside Marvel Studios' Feige,
Louis D'Esposito,
Victoria Alonso, and
Brad Winderbaum.
Writing In addition to Ali, writers for the series include Kate Gritmon, Freddy Syborn,
A. C. Bradley, Matthew Chauncey,
Sabir Pirzada,
Fatimah Asghar, and Will Dunn. Bradley and Chauncey were respectively the head writer, and story editor and writer for
What If...?, joining
Ms. Marvel after completing the scripts for
What If...? season two, with Bradley also serving as a consulting producer on
Ms. Marvel, while Pirzada was a writer for
Moon Knight. Bradley stated that she "significantly [rewrote] all episodes" of the series, which in turn necessitated the WGA to mandate she receive writing credit on three of the episodes. Despite this work, Bradley claimed she was only paid a weekly rate and did not receive script fees. Ali said Amanat's involvement allowed them to "stay true to the character" from the comic books while adding "something new, with a freshness, vitality and contemporary edge". Ali described her time working on
Loki as "good training ground" to serve as
Ms. Marvel head writer, learning what creative freedoms Marvel Studios allowed for each series to inhabit their own part of the MCU while still being bounded by the overarching storytelling. She was told to keep
Kamala's story "ground level", which was already part of her plan for the series, and to always focus on who the character represents. Ali received advice from
WandaVision and
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier head writers
Jac Schaeffer and
Malcolm Spellman. In
Ms. Marvel, Kamala gains the ability to harness cosmic energy and create
hard light constructs from a magical
bangle, which differs from the
shapeshifting abilities that she has in the comics. Feige explained that the
Inhuman source of her abilities in the comics did not "match" with the timeline and events of the MCU, so her powers were adjusted to be related to her Pakistani heritage. They were also brought closer to the cosmic powers of the other heroes in the film
The Marvels (2023), in which Vellani co-stars. Feige added that the character's "giant hands and arms" would still appear in the series "in spirit". The change to Kamala's powers was not part of Ali's initial pitch and arose as a group decision to align the character with what had been established in the MCU. It was important to the creative team that Kamala's new powers have the "same connectivity with her psychology and the journey she's going through and the way she sees herself" as her shapeshifting abilities did in the comics. Amanat and another of the character's co-creators,
G. Willow Wilson, were both consulted on and supported the change. Amanat felt it was "fun to give Kamala different kinds of powers that feel big in scope and cinematic... the essence of what the powers are in the comics is there, both from a metaphorical standpoint and from a visual standpoint." The
finale episode reveals that Kamala has a genetic "mutation", implying that she is a
mutant (which is supported by a musical excerpt of the
X-Men: The Animated Series theme being played during the reveal). Vellani confirmed that Kamala was the first mutant in the MCU, and Ali said this explains why other members of her family do not have powers. Amanat and Wilson originally intended for Kamala to be a mutant in the comics.
Ms. Marvel is a
coming-of-age story that Amanat said would be told "through the lens of Kamala's experience and her wild imagination". She described Kamala's life and world as "naturally colorful" due to Jersey City being a "pretty crazy and vibrant and multicultural place". Carol Danvers is Kamala's inspiration to become a hero after she almost defeated
Thanos during the events of
Avengers: Endgame (2019). Amanat believed it was important to tell a story about who your heroes are for a young person of color, and exploring what that does to "your sense of self". Ali wanted to mix the "whimsical and magical" qualities from Ms. Marvel's comics with American high school films, taking specific inspiration from the films of
John Hughes as well as
10 Things I Hate About You (1999),
Lady Bird (2017),
Eighth Grade (2018),
Booksmart (2019), and the MCU film
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017).
Bollywood actor
Shah Rukh Khan was another inspiration for the series.
Ms. Marvel features a
love triangle between Kamala,
Bruno Carrelli, and
Kamran, which was toned down during the writing process because Ali did not want audiences to believe it was the dominant storyline. El Arbi said it was relatable that Bruno was in the "
friend zone", and Ali felt this was a "fundamental part of growing up". Kamala's family plays a large role in the series, which Ali felt was "vital" and a way to differentiate the character within the MCU. She wanted to explore "what's been passed down to [Kamala] through intergenerational trauma. I wanted to show these four generations of women and show that they are her superpower." Kamala's father also gives her the Ms. Marvel name, while her mother helps construct her costume. The
partition of India is a major part of the series, and was included from the beginning of development. Ali looked to the film
Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), which occurs at the end of
World War II, to see how she could tie in the real-life events of the partition to what had been established in the MCU.
Priya Satia, a professor at
Stanford University and
British Empire historian, consulted on the series. The writers created "essays" about how the
Clandestines, the
Noor dimension, and the Red Daggers were all connected. Ali explained that much of this was unable to be put into the final version of the series due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and other time constraints, with the stories for the Clandestines and the Red Daggers having to be "truncated". Kamala and the Clandestines are referred to as
Djinn in the series. When some Muslim fans pointed out that the
Quran prohibits the worshipping of
Djinn, Obaid-Chinoy responded that
Djinn was just being used to represent "anyone who is different, or anyone who has powers". Ali elaborated that Kamala and the Clandestines were not actually
Djinn, but the writers wanted to explore how Kamala would feel about the name due to its negative cultural connotations.
Casting In September 2020, newcomer
Iman Vellani was cast in the lead role. Her aunt had forwarded her a casting call for the role, which led to Vellani submitting a self-tape before being asked to audition at Marvel Studios' offices in
Los Angeles. She had an in-person screen test in February 2020, as well as a virtual one over
Zoom in June 2020, before landing the role. Set photos in November revealed that
Matt Lintz had been cast in the series. The next month, Marvel confirmed that Lintz had been cast, portraying Bruno Carrelli, along with Yasmeen Fletcher as
Nakia Bahadir; Zenobia Shroff as Muneeba Khan;
Mohan Kapur as Yusuf Khan; Saagar Shaikh as Aamir Khan;
Azhar Usman as Najaf;
Aramis Knight as
Kareem / Red Dagger;
Rish Shah as Kamran;
Travina Springer as
Tyesha Hillman;
Laith Nakli as Sheikh Abdullah; and
Nimra Bucha as Najma. Newcomer
Laurel Marsden was cast in the role of
Zoe Zimmer in February 2021, while
Alysia Reiner was revealed to have also been cast in the series as
Department of Damage Control (DODC) agent Sadie Deever.
Fawad Khan said he was part of the cast in December 2021, appearing as Hasan, and
Mehwish Hayat was reported a month later to also have a role in the series, as Aisha. In March 2022, Adaku Ononogbo was revealed to be cast as Fariha.
Arian Moayed was part of the cast by that May, reprising his role as DODC agent
P. Cleary from
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), as was
Farhan Akhtar in the guest role of Waleed.
Samina Ahmad appears as Kamala's grandmother Sana, who was named for Amanat. Also in February 2021,
Alyy Khan revealed that he planned to be a part of the series in Obaid-Chinoy's episodes. In March 2022,
Anjali Bhimani was revealed as auntie Ruby, a recurring role, after previously appearing in the
Marvel Television series
Runaways.
Jordan Firstman appears as Gabe Wilson, named as an homage to G. Willow Wilson, while Ali Alsaleh and Dan Carter appear as Aadam and Saleem. Vardah Aziz and Asfandyar Khan appear as Kamala's cousins Zainab and Owais, respectively.
Brie Larson makes an uncredited
cameo appearance as Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel in the series finale's
mid-credits scene.
Design Arjun Bhasin was the costume designer for the series. Kamala's Ms. Marvel costume was inspired by
burkinis and
shalwar kameez, with subtle "cultural details" in the fabric. Amanat credited Bhasin for incorporating "cool textures" to make the costume feel South Asian in a subtle way, and she noted that the lightning bolt on the costume was updated from the comic version. Christopher Glass was the production designer for the series, while Natasha Gerasimova took over for the series' reshoots. Perception created the end title sequence, using footage of locations in Jersey City mixed with Ms. Marvel-related murals.
Filming El Arbi and Fallah, Menon, and Obaid-Chinoy directed the series. Filming began in early November 2020 at
Trilith Studios in
Atlanta, Georgia, with additional filming at
Blackhall Studios and Areu Brothers Studios. The series was filmed under the
working title Jersey. Cinematographers were
Robrecht Heyvaert for El Arbi and Fallah, Carmen Cabana for Menon, and
Jules O'Loughlin for Obaid-Chinoy. The animated sequences were not scripted, though an early version of the first episode's script had a moment inside Kamala's head which the directors expanded across the entire series. El Arbi and Fallah conceived them as a way to "get inside Kamala Khan's head and capture her dream world and fantasy world", and for viewers to see the world "through her eyes". These moments were a way to translate the vibrancy the directors enjoyed from the comics into the series, and were inspired by the animated film
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). The integration of the animated elements took a lot of planning during pre-production, so the directors could not improvise how those sequences were shot. El Arbi said the other directors enjoyed using these ideas for their episodes as well. The duo were inspired by
Spike Lee to make New Jersey a character in the series like Lee does with New York City in his films, and also took inspiration from
Steven Spielberg,
anime (particularly for the visual effects), John Hughes's films, the films
Booksmart and
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), the early 1990s television series ''
Parker Lewis Can't Lose and Saved by the Bell'', and
Adrian Alphona and
Jamie McKelvie's art from the
Ms. Marvel comics. El Arbi and Fallah concluded filming their episodes on March 5, 2021. Cultural advisors were used to examine the scripts and footage to ensure authenticity. Secondary filming occurred in
Hudson County, New Jersey, from March to early April. Vellani and Shah continued to film scenes in Atlanta through late April and early May. Obaid-Chinoy began filming the fourth and fifth episodes in
Thailand by March 23, specifically in
Bangkok and at the Studio Park facilities. Due to the series' strict
COVID-19 protocols,
Ms. Marvel was able to obtain a waiver from the Thai government to continue filming in the country throughout April and May 2021 despite
new restrictions put in place in April that suspended other film and television productions. The cast and crew of 450 people were divided into three bubbles so production could continue if a positive test was found in one of the bubbles. Thailand stands in for Pakistan in the series, with the production unable to shoot in that country because of
its political situation, though some pickup shots were filmed in
Karachi.
Principal photography concluded in Thailand in early May 2021. Reshoots, with Obaid-Chinoy directing, occurred at the end of January 2022. She said these were mostly pickup material to help clarify story elements and make a cohesive narrative. Conversely, Gerasimova called the reshoots "pretty massive" because there was "quite a big script restructuring, and a lot of episodes were reshuffled", which resulted in the need to build new sets in Atlanta. This included trying to match with material that was shot in Thailand which Gerasimova said was "incredibly challenging". The series finale's mid-credits scene was shot by
The Marvels director
Nia DaCosta.
Post-production Editors on the series include Nona Khodai (episodes one, four, five, and six), Sabrina Plisco (episodes one, three, and six), and Emma McCleave and Sushila Love (episodes two and three). Visual effects for the series were created by
Digital Domain,
Framestore,
FuseFX,
Method Studios,
RISE, SSVFX,
Trixter, and
Perception.
Music Composer
Laura Karpman worked on the score for the series for five months, from February to July 2022. She previously composed for
What If...? and had been hired to score
The Marvels. Karpman said she immersed herself in Kamala's "rich musical heritage", and wanted to give the character "the kind of dignity and presence of every other major Marvel superhero" while acknowledging her cultural background. She worked closely with Amanat, who had specific ideas she wanted for the music of the series, while also recommending a violinist to Karpman to achieve certain "unique sounds". Approaching Kamala's theme, Karpman looked to incorporate a traditional orchestra with South Asian musical elements, ensure that it was "hip, driven by contemporary beats,
dhol beats,
tabla beats, or both" since the character was a teenager. The South Asian elements were achieved by a number of artists who played the
sarangi,
sursringar,
bansuri, and
mridangam, recording remotely in India and Pakistan, alongside featured soloists, violinist
Raaginder and vocalist
Ganavya Doraiswamy. Karpman was impressed with the improvisation by these artists, believing those takes had "the most interesting stuff" in them over the ones with just the themes she had provided for them to play. These sounds were combined with a 70-piece orchestra that recorded every week at
Synchron Stage Vienna, along with other production and processing elements; an eight-voice choir of South Asian singers added for the fifth episode score. Other themes created by Karpman included one for Kamala's bangle and one for her heritage, and a love theme for Aisha and Hasan, among others. Karpman's score was released digitally by
Marvel Music and
Hollywood Records in two volumes: music from the first three episodes was released on June 22, and music from the last three was released on July 13. Karpman's "
Ms. Marvel Suite" was released as a
single on June 7.
Ms. Marvel also features a number of existing songs, with Ali believing music was an integral part of adapting the character to the screen. She credited Amanat for having a strong vision of which songs were needed and should be used. Amanat called
Ms. Marvel a "great platform" to showcase South Asian music, with the selections being a blend in a similar way to Kamala. All music composed by Laura Karpman except where noted. == Marketing ==