Last month, news spread like wildfire that Orphan Black actress Tatiana Maslany had been cast by Marvel Studios as the star of the forthcoming Disney+ She-Hulk series. Deadline broke the news, and Variety corroborated it on their own, though both did so without comment from Marvel at the time. Now it looks like they may have jumped the gun, as in a recent interview Maslany denied that she’s been cast as She-Hulk.
Speaking with Canadian newspaper The Sudbury Star, Maslany said her casting in the role is “not actually a thing”:
Q: I was hoping to ask you about some of the stuff you’ve got going on too. Obviously you are the new She-Hulk, which is a pretty big deal —
A: That actually isn’t a real thing and it’s like a press release that’s gotten out of hand. It’s totally not — I’ve been connected to these things in the past and press has gotten onto it, but it’s not actually a thing, unfortunately.
Q: Seriously? I think I even saw it on the BBC, like serious news outlets.
A: Yeah, I don’t know how these things get — I don’t know, I don’t know. You know better; I have no idea. (Laughs.)
…huh.
Obviously there are reports of actors being considered for roles all the time, but the Maslany She-Hulk reports were more than that: they seemed rock solid, from outlets with proven track records, and they came from multiple outlets independent of each other. They also made a certain sense, as Maslany has headlined a TV series before (and played dual roles at that, if you want to consider Jennifer Walters and Shulkie separate characters). It’s easy to see why so many people jumped on it as gospel.
Could it still be true? Could Maslany just be being cagey to avoid breaking an NDA and angering her Marvel/Disney bosses? It seems like a pretty definitive denial, but anything’s possible. And if Tatiana Maslany is indeed not playing She-Hulk, who would you like to see cast in the role?
