<i>She-Hulk</i> creator Jessica Gao explained how a conversation between the writers — who are all big MCU fans — led to that hilarious Episode 1 post-credits scene involving Steve Rogers' sex life.
19 “She-Hulk: Attorney At Law” Behind-The-Scenes Facts You Might Not Know, But Probably Should
3. Jessica called adapting the She-Hulk comics into a TV series “a dream.” She always wanted to write a Marvel movie, but once the MCU started doing shows, she knew this was her time. Prior to this, Jessica is best known for writing the iconic “Pickle Rick” episode of Rick & Morty, which earned her an Emmy Award in 2018.
4. Speaking about working with Tatiana Maslany, Jessica said she “can’t imagine anybody else playing She-Hulk,” and right from the start, Tatiana worked tirelessly to bring Jennifer/She-Hulk to life onscreen.
5. In fact, Tatiana was able to bring her skills from Orphan Black to She-Hulk when it came to playing Jennifer Walters and She-Hulk. Jessica said she made playing these two characters “look so easy” even though she makes them feel like two different people.
6. One of Jessica’s favorite scenes that really shows the subtle differences Tatiana worked on between Jen and She-Hulk is when Jen suddenly feels rejected after her one night stand is only interested in She-Hulk in Episode 4.
7. The Episode 1 post-credit scene, which features Jen hilariously finding out that Steve Rogers/Captain America did have sex, was born out of the writers being huge Marvel fans and having discussions about the MCU amongst each other.
8. Originally, the first She-Hulk episode was going to be the eighth episode, aka the penultimate episode, of the season. The second episode is so short because it had to be edited and tweaked once it was no longer the pilot.
9. In fact, there was a lot of discussion about whether or not the first She-Hulk episode needed to be an origin story. However, once Jessica realized some fans wouldn’t know a lot about Jennifer Walters before the show, they decided to pivot and put Jen becoming She-Hulk for the first time in Episode 1.
10. Jen’s hilarious fourth wall breaks in She-Hulk were Jessica’s favorite thing to include, and it’s something that was taken directly from the She-Hulk comics.
11. And Jessica says the fourth wall breaks work so well in She-Hulk because Tatiana is so good at them. She loves that when Tatiana looks at the camera, “you really feel like she’s talking to you and that you’re her friend.”
12. She-Hulk gives several MCU actors, like Mark Ruffalo and Benedict Wong, a chance to explore their characters in a comedy setting. This is one of the few times Hulk and Wong get to be funny and not “worry about the fate of the universe.”
13. Everyone on the She-Hulk set was in awe of how kind and amazing Mark Ruffalo is. Jessica said he’s the “nicest dude” and when he snaps into actor mode, it’s an incredible thing to watch.
14. One of the most important relationships in She-Hulk is between Jennifer and Nikki, and the writers wanted to make sure that their friendship felt “real” and “lived in,” which is why there are several moments where Nikki and Jen are simply sitting on a couch, each on their phones, but talking to each other. That depiction of female friendship felt the most authentic.
15. Ginger Gonzaga improvised the line in Episode 3 when she tells Jennifer that she sent Wong a thirst trap and it was just a picture of her holding a bunch of books.
16. Jameela Jamil is the one who helped She-Hulk land Megan Thee Stallion for her hilarious cameo in Episode 3. Jameela and Megan worked together on Legendary, and she reached out to see if Megan would be up for playing herself in She-Hulk.
And here are some behind-the-scenes pics of the moment because it’s truly my favorite thing ever:
19. And finally, if Jessica could give any She-Hulk character a spinoff series, it would be Madisynn, who arrives in Episode 4 and instantly becomes infatuated with Wong.
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law is streaming now on Disney+.
More on She-Hulk:
- “She-Hulk” Creator Jessica Gao Says It Was The “Happiest Moment” When Megan Thee Stallion Agreed To Be On The Show Nora Dominick · Sept. 1, 2022
- It’s Time To Find Out Which Marvel Cinematic Universe Characters You’re A Combo Of With The Cast Of “She-Hulk” Nora Dominick · Aug. 26, 2022
- 19 “She-Hulk” Details From Episode 1 That Are Small And Funny, But You Might’ve Missed Them The First Time Nora Dominick · Aug. 18, 2022