Zawe Ashton reportedly cast as villain in forthcoming Captain Marvel sequel

Ashton was previously seen in the 2019 horror movie Velvet Buzzsaw

Zawe Ashton has reportedly been cast as the villain in Captain Marvel 2, which also stars Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel.

Ashton was previously seen in the 2019 horror movie Velvet Buzzsaw. The news was first reported by Deadline.

Directed by Nia DaCosta, who also was at the helm of the Candyman reboot, the follow-up to 2019's Captain Marvel is currently set for release on 11 November, 2022.

Megan McDonnell, a story editor on the Marvel-based Disney+ series WandaVision, wrote the script for the Captain Marvel sequel, and Iman Vellani and Teyonah Parris are also set to star.

Fans responded positively to the news on social media, writing, “I've been waiting for Zawe Ashton to break out big ever since she was in Fresh Meat. Give her any role she wants tbh”.

"That’s my talented, funny, amazing friend @ZaweAshton kicking ass!!!!"

As previously reported last summer, Nia DaCosta is the first black woman to direct a Marvel Studios movie. She made her directorial debut with indie film Little Woods and directed the highly anticipated re-imagining of the iconic 1992 horror movie, Candyman, produced by Get Out’s Jordan Peele.

Elsewhere in the Marvel universe, during the Super Bowl earlier this week (7 February), fans were treated to the first trailer for the forthcoming Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Solider, which sees Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan reprise their MCU roles of Sam Wilson (Falcon) and Bucky Barnes (The Winter Solider).

Additional MCU features for release in 2022 are Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quanumania and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.