She-Hulk Director Kat Coiro (Episodes 1–4, 8 & 9) has been a She-Hulk comic lover and Shulkie fan since childhood. During the global press day for “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” on Disney+, Coiro shared what made bringing She-Hulk to life so special.
(L-R): Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer “Jen” Walters/She-Hulk and Mark Ruffalo as Smart Hulk / Bruce Banner in Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.
INTERVIEW with Director Kat Coiro on Bringing her Love of She-Hulk to Life
She-Hulk first appeared in “The Savage She-Hulk” #1 (February 1980). A titular female character was a special sight for 80s kids and something young females especially enjoyed being able to read. Jen Walters, Bruce Banner’s cousin, is a highly skilled lawyer who has served as legal counsel to various superheroes on numerous occasions. She-Hulk has been a member of The Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Heroes for Hire, the Defenders, Fantastic Force, and S.H.I.E.L.D.
Savage She-Hulk (1980) #1. Published February 10, 1980. She-Hulk’s first appearance and origin issue. Credit: Marvel.
Director Kat Coiro remembers well being one of those young females in the 80s admiring the She-Hulk comic on the racks.
“Well, I remember very vividly, being a little girl and seeing the cover of a She-Hulk comic amidst the sea of male comics. And just not knowing who she was or what this was, but knowing that I was moved by it. And that the idea of being large and in charge and, you know, taking control. Taking up space was something that really resonated with me. And I remember, I bought that comic book. And so, when this show came along, it was really the culmination of a real dream.”
Director Kat Coiro
She-Hulk has always been a little different than the other female superheroes in the comics and the She-Hulk we see in “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” is no different.
“Each episode really has a distinct flavor, and we pulled from so many genres,” Coiro said. “You know, the easy answer is that it’s a half-hour legal comedy. But it also has huge cinematic scope and elements of drama, action, and suspense. It really is a little bit of a peek behind the curtain at the every day–sometimes even mundane–life of a superhero, which we do get to experience in this long-form series.”
Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer “Jen” Walters/She-Hulk in Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.
As in the comics, Jen Walters is seen breaking the Fourth Wall—something that she did long before Deadpool.
“I like to say that she was doing it long before Deadpool or Fleabag,” Coiro shared. “And ultimately, it was about finding the balance to where breaking the fourth wall does connect to the audience and draws us in. But not so much so that we’re not connecting to her story and the world that we’ve built.”
Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer “Jen” Walters/She-Hulk in Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.
It’s often challenging to find the right balance between fun and action when directing the scenes, especially when you’re a longtime Shulkie, but director Kat Coiro has that dialed in.
“It was one of the biggest challenges of the series,” Coiro said. “Because action and CGI take a lot of rigid preparedness. And a comedy is the opposite, where you want looseness and, you know, you want to be able to play a little.”
“One example I can think of is where we would rehearse in advance so that then we could come in and set up all the technical things like the platforms for example that a Hulk must walk on so that then we could come in and have some semblance of looseness. But it definitely, I would say was the biggest challenge of the show was balancing all the technical aspects, all the action, all the stunts with comedy, which traditionally is, you know, just people in a room talking with cameras pointed at them.”
“Especially I think of our finale and everything you were juggling, it was just a million things.”
(L-R): Mark Ruffalo as Smart Hulk / Bruce Banner and Tatiana Maslany as Jennifer “Jen” Walters/She-Hulk in Marvel Studios’ She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, exclusively on Disney+. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios. © 2022 MARVEL.
About “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law”
In “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany)—an attorney specializing in superhuman-oriented legal cases—must navigate the complicated life of a single, 30-something who also happens to be a green 6-foot-7-inch superpowered hulk.
Episode 1 of “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” is now streaming on Disney+.
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