At the premiere of Marvel Studios’ Disney+ show Echo in Los Angeles, the show’s lead star Alaqua Cox revealed the similarities of her character with the actor’s real life. For fans, it is certainly fascinating.
The latest Disney+ show stars Cox as Maya Lopez a.k.a. Echo, working and then plotting revenge on Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin. The street-level MCU show brings action and father-daughter relationship dynamics in a conflicting way while tracing back to Indian indigenous myth.
Also read: Echo: What Does Every Episode Name of Alaqua Cox’s MCU Series Mean?
Alaqua Cox Revealed Similarities With Her Echo Character
Echo has been one of the most hyped MCU shows since its announcement. Alaqua Cox in the lead as Maya Lopez, as the actor said at the premiere, was very close and personal as she could see the subtle resemblance of her character with her real life. “We both have childhood trauma that we were raised with,” Cox revealed (via Marvel Entertainment).
“For example, I grew up, as you know, I am an amputee. So, I went through many different kinds of surgeries as a child. And so, that made me a warrior, in a sense. And her, Maya, she had the death of her mother, and all these tragic events that happened in her life. So, we both have different traumatic experiences. So, it kind of makes us very similar in a way because we’re both warriors, and we’re tough, and we’re badass, and I believe that’s how we’re the same.”
Cox has lived the character and the character arc in the series was really engrossing. The relationship between Kingpin and Echo has been the highlighting factor of the show but Echo stood out as the worthy opponent of the MCU’s street-level villain.
Sydney Freeland Explains The Crux of Echo
Marion Dayre’s Echo is rooted in the raw approach to storytelling embedding darker and grittier tones that are more grounded in ethnicity. For director Sydney Freeland, Echo is inherently the crux of the family dynamics exploring the lead character’s indigenous root. “Family, and more specifically, like, the definition of family is something we explore deeply in this series,” Freeland said (via Marvel Entertainment).
“And the way they relate to each other, the way they, their dynamics and everything are going to be the crux of our entire series. Having the chance to tell a story about Marvel’s first Native American character. I’m not saying a hero, that was, like, reason enough, you know, I think just having the chance to be involved with this project and you know, craft a world, craft a story, craft a series with authenticity in mind, it’s an absolute dream come true.”
Certainly, Lopez does not have all the traits of an MCU hero but perhaps that’s what made the character more interesting. Her revenge on Kingpin is personal unlike Daredevil’s vigilante approach to crime, still, Lopez has her essence in the narrative bringing the subtle development of the characters as the episodes progress.
