Star of Comic-Con Geraldine Viswanathan Joins Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’ Alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfus
- The “Drive-Away Doll” actress was one of the last actors to join the film in the role initially intended for Ayo Edebiri before she dropped out.
The speculation surrounding Geraldine Viswanathan’s character in Marvel’s 2025 film “Thunderbolts” has ended. Somewhat. The “Drive-Away Dolls” actress will be seen as Mel, the assistant to Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ character, Valentina “Val” Allegra de Fontaine. The revelation was made in a video uploaded on The Marvel Entertainment YouTube channel where the “Drive-Away Dolls” actress is credited as Mel, “which might be short for Melissa, and suggests she could be the MCU version of the character Songbird.”
Although the ensemble cast, including Viswanathan, was one of the main attractions at San Diego Comic-Con, they did not reveal who she would be playing. The Blockers star was one of the last actors to join the film and her exact role still has yet to be revealed. The role was initially intended for Ayo Edebiri before she dropped out.
Viswanathan, 29, the daughter of an Indian father and a Swiss mother, was most recently seen in the bawdy road trip film “Drive-Away Dolls.” Directed by Oscar winner Ethan Coen, it follows Jamie (Margaret Qualley), “an uninhibited free spirit bemoaning yet another breakup with a girlfriend,” and her “demure friend” Marian (Viswanathan), “who desperately needs to loosen up,” according to the film’s synopsis. “In search of a fresh start, the two young lesbian women embark on an impromptu road trip to Tallahassee, but things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals along the way,” the synopsis adds. The cast includes Hollywood heavyweights Matt Damon, Pedro Pascal, Beanie Feldstein, and Colman Domingo.
Before that Viswanathan starred in “The Beanie Bubble,” about the meteoric rise in popularity of the Beanie Babies and tells the story behind the toy obsession that took off in the 1990s. It follows toy manufacturer turned billionaire Ty Warner, and centers around the women who were integral to his success. Viswanathan plays Maya, who was studying to be a doctor, but an internship at Ty Inc. led to a variety of opportunities for her creative ideas to migrate into reality.
Viswanathan came into the limelight as the surprise breakout star of the 2018 box office hit, “Blockers.” The raunchy comedy is about three American teenage girls determined to lose their virginity on prom night and their equally determined parents’ ploys to stop them. She made headlines for her “sweet connection” with her on-screen dad, played by John Cena.
The film, which premiered at South by Southwest in 2018, received rave reviews. The Last Magazine, in an in-depth profile and interview of Viswanathan said that many critics singled out her performance in “Blockers,” along with its “feminist undertones.”
The same year, she was listed among The Hollywood Reporter’s “Next Gen Talent 2018,” a list of 20 rising stars who are shaking up the industry.”
Another role that fetched her instant recognition and stardom was her lead role in “Hala.” The film, written and directed by Minhal Baig, follows a 16-year-old Muslim girl living in Chicago under the strict, religious rules of her parents. The film was screened in the U.S. Dramatic Competition section at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. TV Guide said Viswanathan’s role in “Hala” is “a big swing” for her, “not just because it’s her first dramatic part, but also because Hala, who skateboards and masturbates and recites Anne Carson poems in class, is a (not The) portrait of a modern Muslim teenager, a community to which Viswanathan is not necessarily connected.”
After receiving rave reviews for her performances in both films, she mentioned that being one of a handful of Indian diaspora actresses who Western audiences recognize isn’t enough. She told TV Over Mind that she wants a career full of roles in which the audience and the industry can “see you as a complete person, or character.”