Marvel Studios has tapped newcomer Iman Vellani to play Ms Marvel aka Kamala Khan, their first Pakistani-American teen superhero. The Canadian actor, who hails from the Toronto area, will headline her own Disney Plus series before appearing on the big screen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “Bad Boys for Life” helmers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, a two-time Oscar winner in the documentary short category, and Meera Menon, who has worked on shows like “The Walking Dead” and “The Punisher” , will direct the series.

Bisha K Ali, a scribe and stand-up comic known for her personal, political comedy, will serve as head writer on the project. Insiders told The Hollywood Reporter that Marvel had been testing actors throughout the summer and had zeroed in on Vellani by late August or early September. A year ago, the upcoming actor took part in a Toronto International Film Festival committee that helped highlight films that speak to teenagers. She focused on “Hala”, a film revolving around a Pakistani American teen pulled between her family and life in the West – themes that are echoed in the ‘Ms Marvel’ comics. Ms Marvel, who debuted in 2014 as Marvel’s first Muslim character to lead a comic book title, follows the New Jersey-based teenager Kamala Khan who tries to find her own way as a Pakistani American living in a religious family.

The character, who possesses the power of shape shifting and healing factor, was created by G Willow Wilson, artiste Adrian Alphona, and editors Sana Amanat and Stephen Wacker..