Ant-Man 3's Writer Knows How Nova Should Debut In The MCU
"Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" scribe Jeff Loveness may have brought his experience in creating whacky science-fiction tales due to his time as a writer on "Rick and Morty," but his intimate knowledge of Marvel Comics stems directly from the superhero books he worked on. Loveness has written for both Marvel and DC, as well as for the independent publisher Boom! Studios, covering "Shazam!," "Spider-Man," and "Nova." The latter is near and dear to Loveness' heart, so it's no surprise that the writer has a few ideas about how the character can translate to the screen.
The Nova Corps, an intergalactic police force that's a staple of the cosmic side of Marvel, has already appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the rulers of Xandar and enemies of the Kree. In its first and only actual appearance, the Corps arrested the Guardians of the Galaxy, then had to rely on them to save Xandar from Ronan the Accuser. Even though the Guardians saved the day, "Avengers: Infinity War" mentions that Thanos later annihilated Xandar and the Nova Corps in order to reach the Power Stone. However, the comics' singular character known as Nova is different than the Nova Corps group and has so far not appeared in the MCU.
It's just you and the stars
Richard Rider is the main character known as Nova, and initially played the role of an everyman who was chosen to continue the dying legacy of the Corps upon his debut in 1976. More recently, Rider played a significant role in the "Annihilation" storyline, the same event that helped the Guardians of the Galaxy in their journey to mainstream popularity. In an interview with ComicBook.com, Loveness explained Rider's role and personality as more of an intrepid maverick than a by-the-books officer of the law:
"Rich Rider has that 'Top Gun' energy to him, where he has some Dash Rendar lawman in him, like 'Justified.' He's not a cop, he's not a Green Lantern. At the same time, he's this adventurer out in the cosmos. He's not comfortable being at home, he's like a sailor in that way. Treating Novas like the scouts, or the ones that go the farthest, to use the emptiness of space would be really cool in a Nova movie. You could literally rocket yourself through space. It's just you and the stars."
However, Loveness' work on "Nova" focused on Rider's successor, teenage Sam Alexander, whose story the writer describes as "very Spielberg movie, very Amblin." Loveness compared the character to fellow younger generation heroes Miles Morales ("Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse") and Kamala Khan ("Ms. Marvel"), calling the group a "trinity." There is reportedly a "Nova" project in development at Marvel Studios, though it's unclear which iteration of the character it will focus on. Sabir Pirzada, who wrote for the "Moon Knight" series on Disney+, is attached, but perhaps Loveness' passion for the Novas will shine through.