Tatiana Maslany cites musician Sophie as inspiration for She-Hulk

Marvel’s onscreen superhero pantheon has seen every kind of character under the sun–except for She-Hulk, according to Tatiana Maslany. In fact, Jennifer Walters “really is the antithesis of most superhero narratives,” the Orphan Black alum tells Empire.

What about She-Hulk makes her not like other girls? For one, an “element of denial” and “rejecting what’s happened” regarding her new abilities. That’s not exactly the most unique quality for a budding hero, but it does cause “the fun tension between Jennifer and She-Hulk.”

For another, there’s her “male-dominated and incredibly vicious and hierarchal,” profession as a lawyer. “When she’s heading this superhuman firm, that’s where we get some really fun characters that she’s either defending or in opposition of. It’s like this really absurd take on a legal show,” Maslany tells the outlet.

The actor reportedly did a “deep-dive into the comics” to get into Jeniffer’s mindset, but she also looked outside of Marvel for her inspiration: “I always come back to Sophie, who’s this amazing trans artist who unfortunately died last year,” she explains. “What I love about Sophie’s music is this combo of organic and electrical, industrial-type sounds that felt connected to She-Hulk.”

Devoted Sophie fans will surely appreciate that her influence now extends to a cultural monolith like the MCU. Of course, Maslany also had some more obvious avenues of inspiration, like the OG Hulk, Bruce Banner, who steps in to mentor his cousin Jennifer when her powers manifest.

On working with Mark Ruffalo, Maslany recalls, “We were so goofy, like two kids who had been handed shovels by our parents and told to go and play in the sandbox.” That playfulness is certainly evidence in the She-Hulk trailer—and the presence of a Marvel mainstay should help pave the way for a new character, especially one who is supposedly an “antithesis” of everything that came before.