‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Writer Wants Glen Powell to Play the MCU Hero Fans Have Been Waiting for Years to See

Michael Waldron, best known for creating Loki and writing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, recently sat down with the Bingeworthy podcast to talk about his new series Chad Powers and his collaboration with Glen Powell.

The two worked together closely on the project, which Waldron described as a mix of humor and heart.

Before the interview ended, Waldron was asked a fun question, if he could cast Powell as any character in the Marvel universe, who would it be? Without thinking twice, he said Nova, the space hero fans have been waiting to see in the MCU for years. “He’d be a pretty good Nova,” Waldron said with a grin.

Nova is one of Marvel’s well-known cosmic characters and a member of the Nova Corps, first introduced in Guardians of the Galaxy. Fans have compared him to DC’s Green Lantern because both characters are powered by intergalactic forces. Waldron’s choice seems to make sense, Powell has the charm, energy, and emotional range that could bring Nova to life on screen, Richard Rider version that is.

Marvel Studios has teased the character’s arrival for almost a decade, but so far, nothing concrete has come from it. Unfortunately, the chance of seeing Nova anytime soon doesn’t look promising.

In late 2024, Marvel executive Brad Winderbaum confirmed that a live-action Nova series was in early development. Writer Sabir Pirzada was working on the story, focusing on Richard Rider as the last surviving member of the Nova Corps. Later, Criminal Minds writer Ed Bernero was brought in to take over as showrunner.

However, the project was recently put on hold. Along with Nova, two other Marvel shows were also paused as part of a major shift in how Marvel handles television. In the past, Marvel treated its shows almost like movie productions, if a project was announced, it was nearly guaranteed to happen. Now, the studio is moving toward a more traditional TV process, developing many ideas but only moving forward with the strongest ones.

This new direction comes after Marvel decided to scale back and focus on quality over quantity, especially following the creative overhaul of Daredevil: Born Again. The studio reportedly wants to prevent oversaturating audiences with too much superhero content.

So, while Waldron’s idea of Glen Powell as Nova has fans excited, it might be a while before we see it happen, if at all. Still, it’s easy to imagine Powell as the helmet-wearing cosmic hero soaring through space.

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