Who Is Ms. Marvel? Kamala Khan’s MCU Origin, Powers & Comics Changes Explained

Iman Vellani brought Kamala Khan to life in Marvel Studios’ Ms. Marvel, debuting as part of Phase 4, and is set to have a very bright future in the MCU, next appearing in The Marvels. Following Kamala Khan’s debut in Marvel Comics’ 2014 series Ms. Marvel, plans were put into place to explore the character in the live-action MCU. This was confirmed by Kevin Feige in 2018, who noted that Ms. Marvel would make her MCU debut following the release of 2019’s Captain Marvel, and a series was later announced to be in development for the Marvel Studios branch of Disney+. In September 2020, Vellani was cast in the titular role – her first acting credit.

Ms. Marvel finally premiered on Disney+ on June 8, 2022, as part of the MCU’s Phase 4, introducing the world to Vellani’s Kamala Khan. Despite early review bombs, Ms. Marvel became one of the MCU’s highest-rated projects, and marked a strong debut for Kamala Khan, who not only grew as a young superhero in the series, but became the vehicle to tease some major storylines in the MCU’s future. In adapting her for the MCU, Marvel Studios made expansive changes to Ms. Marvel from Marvel Comics, connecting her more solidly to well-established heroes, and hinted at a huge future for Kamala Khan’s Ms. Marvel in the MCU’s future.

Ms. Marvel’s MCU Origins Explained

Kamala Khan was introduced to the MCU as a 16-year-old high school student from Jersey City, who happens to be a massive fan of the Avengers—Captain Marvel in particular. In hopes of making her cosplay costume for the first annual AvengerCon as impressive as possible, Kamala acquires a mysterious bangle from a box of junk sent from her grandmother in Pakistan. After donning the bangle, Kamala finds herself able to create constructs out of cosmic energy which she later labels “hard-light.” This allows her to perform some impressive feats of power throughout Ms. Marvel, and she later decides to become a superhero, using the moniker “Ms. Marvel”.

Over the course of her debut MCU adventure, Kamala Khan learns about her mystical heritage as a Clandestine – a being from the Noor Dimension that sits adjacent to the MCU’s main reality. The Clandestines formed the basis for the ancient tales of the Djinn, yet it seems the bangle she acquired did not originally belong to these beings, and did not grant Kamala her light-based powers single-handedly. In fact, Ms. Marvel’s ending revealed Kamala Khan to be the MCU’s first on-screen mutant, with the bangle having unlocked her genes’ latent abilities, setting up some massive storylines for the MCU’s future, and making Ms. Marvel a crucial character going forward.

Ms. Marvel’s Powers Explained

Kamala Khan’s background as a Clandestine and a mutant mean she has access to some remarkable powers, many of which she has already shown off in her debut MCU series. The bangle unlocked these abilities within her, and immediately granted her a level of clairvoyance. This was used when she first wore the bangle and was transported to the Noor Dimension, and throughout the series when the bangle shows her visions of Najma, another Clandestine, and the last train heading to Karachi during the Partition of India in 1942. Kamala Khan also found herself becoming a skilled fighter, marksman, and acrobat through her superhero activities in Ms. Marvel.

Her most impressive abilities, however, emanate from the unlocked mutation within her genes. Initially, her ability to create hard-light constructs was thought to be connected to the bangle, but it was later revealed that this power was coming from her own body, with the bangle perhaps being used as a conduit. This power allows her to draw energy from the Noor Dimension, which she uses to create platforms and armor around her body. This armor allows her to grow her body in a process called “embiggening,” and makes her bulletproof and effectively invulnerable. Kamala can also use her hard-light to extend her limbs, and has acquired an enhanced strength.​​​​​​​

Ms. Marvel’s Comics Changes Explained

Some of Kamala Khan’s backstory from Marvel Comics was retained when adapting her for the MCU. In both media, she is a teenager from Jersey City who idolizes Carol Danvers’ Captain Marvel and dreams of becoming a hero. However, that’s where the similarities end, as Kamala Khan’s superhero career is very different in the Marvel Comics. Kamala made her first cameo in 2013’s Captain Marvel #14, but starred in her own series starting in 2014’s Ms. Marvel #1 following the world-changing Inhumanity storyline. During this event, Terrigen Mists are released worldwide, causing thousands of unwitting Inhumans to unlock their abilities, including Kamala Khan.

As an Inhuman in Marvel Comics, Ms. Marvel’s size-changing and elasticity abilities – perhaps blending the powers of Ant-Man and Mister Fantastic – are biological, without her needing to create hard-light constructs for her to use them. She can also, on occasion, shapeshift into other individuals or inanimate objects, but uses this power rarely. Deemed potentially too creepy for the live-action MCU, these abilities, and her Inhuman heritage, were changed, allowing her to better fit in the well-established franchise without seeming too unorthodox. Since her MCU debut, Marvel Comics’ Kamala Khan has been revealed to a mutant-Inhuman hybrid, though her mutant ability hasn’t yet been confirmed.

Ms. Marvel’s Role In The Marvels Explained

Ms. Marvel’s finale ended with Kamala Khan and Carol Danvers mysteriously switching places, setting up the events of Marvel Studios’ upcoming The Marvels. The Marvels brings together Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel, Teyonah Parris’ Monica Rambeau, aka Photon—who gained her abilities during WandaVision—and Iman Vellani’s Ms. Marvel as a new team in the MCU. Due to the actions of Zawe Ashton’s new villain, Dar-Benn, the trio find their powers entangled, meaning they swap places every time their abilities are activated. The Marvels will thrust Kamala Khan well-and-truly into the world of superheroes after her smaller-scale story on Disney+.

As well as exploring a new team dynamic for Captain Marvel, Photon, and Ms. Marvel, The Marvels will also surely expand further on Kamala Khan’s status as a mutant in the MCU, perhaps helping to set up the introduction of many new mutants in 2024’s Deadpool 3 and beyond. Ms. Marvel was the first confirmed mutant in the MCU, which was the first major development for the species following Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019, and though she was closely followed by Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’s Namor, Kamala Khan as a mutant is still a big deal, so it’s likely The Marvels will explore mutants in more detail.

Will Ms. Marvel Become An Avenger In The MCU?

Since her introduction in the MCU’s Phase 4, Kamala Khan hasn’t been quiet about her love for the Avengers, and her desire to potentially become one. In The Marvels trailers, she repeatedly asks Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury if she’s being put through “Avengers tests,” which could be teasing her eventual recruitment for the team. The status of the MCU’s Avengers has been unclear since Avengers: Endgame, despite many new heroes debuting in Phases 4 and 5 who could easily take spots on the superpowered team. The team is expected to come together for 2026’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, however, and Ms. Marvel may be included in the line-up.

Even so, there are other options for Kamala Khan’s future as the MCU’s Ms. Marvel. In Marvel Comics, Ms. Marvel is a prominent member of the Young Avengers, and many of this young superhero team’s members have also been introduced to the MCU in recent years, including Kate Bishop, Cassie Lang, and Billy and Tommy Maximoff. If not the Young Avengers, Kamala Khan could potentially become a member of the MCU’s X-Men team, given her status as a mutant. It’s been reported that Marvel Studios is meeting writers to hear pitches for an X-Men reboot, so Ms. Marvel could potentially help introduce this highly anticipated team to the MCU.