THOUGH comic books have been around for decades, comic book movies only truly became mainstream in the late ‘90s and early 2000s.
After the smashing success of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man in 2002, these films would become an important part of cultural zeitgeist, particularly after the success of Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe, which as of January 2022, has earned more than US$25 billion (RM152.4 billion) worldwide, making it the biggest movie franchise of all time.
In honour of Mother’s Day that is just around the corner, BUZZ takes a look at mothers and mother-figures in comic book movies over the past two decades.
Helen Parr
Debuting in Brad Bird’s The Incredibles in 2004, Helen Parr is the wife to Bob Parr, and the mother of Violet, Dash and Jack-Jack. Voiced by Holly Hunter, Helen embodied the qualities (and ‘flaws’) that make mothers who they are.
Uncompromising in her devotion to Bob and her love for her kids, it only makes sense to place the stretchy superhero this high in the list.
May Parker
There have been three actresses that played the role of being a mother figure to Peter Parker in films; Rosemary Harris in the Sam Raimi trilogy, Sally Field in Marc Webb’s two The Amazing Spider-Man films and Marisa Tomei in the current MCU.
Due to bad writing, Sally Field is out of the running, and while Harris is amazing in the role, she wasn’t important in Raimi’s trilogy. For this list, we’re going with Tomei as the best May Parker.
Far more involved with Peter’s life, Tomei’s May was crucial to the development of the character because she was always there, and at the end of her tenure in the MCU, Tomei’s take on the character was the one to deliver the iconic line that would transform Holland’s Spider-Man into being comic accurate.
Martha Kent
With the possibility of another Superman film with Henry Cavill decreasing every passing year, the likelihood of seeing Diane Lane reprise her role as Clark Kent’s adoptive mother lessens just as much.
Debuting in Man of Steel, and then in Batman v Superman and Zack Snyder’s Justice League, Diane Lane’s take on the character was important as it served to be a human tether to Snyder’s version of a cold Clark Kent.
Frigga
Playing the role of the mother to Thor and Loki, Rene Russo’s warmth transcended the character, and it offset the steely, more stoic performance of Anthony Hopkins who played her husband, Odin Borson.
In both Thor and Thor: The Dark World, Frigga was basically a space mom and she embodied the quality that foster parents should have; undivided, unbiased love. Where Odin clearly favoured his blood-son Thor over the adopted Loki, Frigga loved both her sons equally, despite Loki’s birth origins.
In Avengers: Endgame, an alternate Frigga appeared, and this version knew that the depressed Thor in front of her was a version of her son from a different timeline. Classic mum instincts.
Wanda Maximoff
From her appearance in Captain America: The Winter Soldier’s mid-credits scene to the closure of Avengers: Endgame, Elizabeth Olsen’s Wanda went from single, to being in a relationship and back to being single. Motherhood was never part of the equation.
However, in the insanity that resulted from her mental anguish from losing Vision, Wanda abruptly became a mother to twins Tommy and Billy, which she quickly became accustomed to.
Perhaps due to her subconscious wanting to keep the events and her family in WandaVision intact, Wanda was fiercely protective of her sons, and when the series ended, having her love and children taken away from her, Wanda is desperate to get them back, which is the catalyst for the current Doctor Strange sequel.
Ramonda
Angela Bassett, as talented as she is, held a somewhat minor role – in the grand scale of the MCU – as Ramonda, the Queen Mother of Wakanda, and as the mother of T’Challa and Shuri.
In Black Panther, she served an advisory role to the late Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, as the son and newly minted Wakandan king turned to his mother for advice due to T’Challa’s father passing away in a previous movie.
Due to the sad passing of Boseman in 2020, the mantle of Black Panther is rumoured that it will be passed to Letitia Wright’s Shuri in the upcoming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
As the MCU moves towards more female representation, Ramonda will probably play a bigger role as mother and mentor to Shuri.
