Brie Larson channels her superpowers to lift up, inspire others
Brie Larson is a one-woman inspirational message. A star-struck fan rushed her at a recent Comic Con event and uttered: “You’re just amazing.”
The Oscar winner seized the moment.
“Takes one to know one,” she replied to the girl, who was too shocked to break the magic with a selfie.
Larson, 34, figures it this way: “I just love this Earth and being here. I like spending my time getting to know people, getting to know humanity and getting to know this Earth for as long as I have the time,” she says. “Why not make it special for everyone?”
It’s a special time for Larson, who has a pair of big projects out this fall.
She stars in and served as executive producer of the new Apple TV+ series “Lessons in Chemistry,” based on the bestselling novel by Bonnie Garmus. Larson plays Elizabeth Zott, a genius female scientist in the 1960s who is fired from her lab and takes on a new job hosting a TV cooking show to educate housewives on scientific topics.
On the big screen, Larson will resume her role as Captain Marvel, the first female to lead a superhero franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in “The Marvels.” Her Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel joins forces with Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) in the blockbuster due out next month.
How does she choose roles? “It’s sort of like falling in love,” Larson admits in an interview conducted before the Screen Actors Guild strike. “It just hits you and it’s happening and it’s all you see and think about. I go all-in.”
Larson shares her good life tips:
Know yourself
The best advice Larson ever received? “Be yourself,” she shares. “It’s like the most obvious thing and really is everything. … Own your own identity, acknowledge your reality and let your voice be heard.”
Learn your lessons
“If you stay open, life can be your university,” the actress says. “The joy of doing a project like ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ was learning how to be strong. She stands up for herself, and that changed me and got inside of me.
“I’ve also learned female strength from Captain Marvel, plus I know now that I can bench press 300 pounds, and I didn’t know that was possible before doing that role.”
Face your fears
“To me anyone who faces their own fears is a superhero. I find strength in that kind of vulnerability,” Larson says. “I think life constantly tests us and asks if we’re strong enough.”
Stay curious
“I want to say how grateful I am to hear people’s stories,” she says. “People are fascinating if you just stop to listen to what someone else is going through in life. We need to be curious about the other person. Curiosity leads to compassion.”
Rethink control
“I can’t have control of everything in the world, but I can have control of what I do,” Larson says. “In my case, these films will live way beyond me, so I want them to mean something. That’s my way of having control.
Control over her fan base? Not so much. “I’ll be in the grocery store and hear, ‘Are you friends with my cousin?’ I have that classic face where you think you know me from somewhere.”
Say you’re sorry
“Part of the weakness of Captain Marvel is that she can be very headstrong and dive into a situation without thinking it through,” Larson says. “She can be rash and say the wrong thing.
“But the thing I love about her is that she apologizes. I think it’s really important to give an honest apology when you’re wrong about things. … You made a mistake, acknowledge it and say that you’re sorry. That sorry means the world to me. It’s powerful and proves it’s not about perfection.”
Meet your heroes
Larson is the first one to admit that she geeks out over certain pop stars, especially Mariah Carey. “I’m such a fangirl, and you can never take that out of me,” she says. “I couldn’t believe that when I met Mariah she actually knew my name. She even said, ‘Brie, can I get a picture.’
“I actually said, ‘No, I have to do this thing, but I’ll be right back.’ … I panicked. So now, when anyone panics meeting me, I totally get it.”
Keep a secret
Larson says she signed on to play Captain Marvel because “I knew we were in a time right now where we’re ready for a different type of female hero.”
What can she say about “The Marvels”? “I sure can tell you that it is a film and people are in it, it will come out this year in theaters … because I can’t keep secrets any longer. Otherwise, I’d hate to spoil any of it.”
She says the women teaming up to save the world “was the idea from the start. The concept of just one woman saving the world … no, that’s not how it works. We’re all here and we all have something we can do to contribute.”