Niki Caro

Last week, the Internet entered into something of a panic when it was announced that Niki Caro, the director of the live-action Mulan remake, didn’t have any songs planned for the movie. For those of you who were bereft at the thought of no “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” army training/dance number, don’t freak out yet. While there aren’t any songs in the script right now, that doesn’t mean there won’t be any at all.

So far Disney’s live-action remakes have brought some of the most iconic Disney princesses to life on the big screen. We’ve seen Lily James try on the glass slipper as Cinderella, Elle Fanning prick her finger as Aurora, and this weekend Emma Watson dons Belle’s classic yellow gown in Beauty and the Beast. But it’s about time for a Disney princess to roll up her sleeves and prove just how tough a woman can be. Enter:

The recent results of USC’s annual study pegged Disney as one of the worst offenders when it comes to hiring diverse directors, which makes today’s news pretty darn positive: The studio has tapped director Niki Caro (best known for Whale Rider) to helm their live-action reimagining of Mulan, making her the second woman to direct a film with a budget of over $100 million for Disney — that’s the second woman ever in the entire history of the studio.

Earlier last week it was reported that Captain Marvel is currently courting three possible directors to helm Marvel's first standalone superheroine origin film. Now it appears another potential name has been added to the list: Rebecca Thomas. Jeff Sneider of Mashable broke the news that Thomas was a "mystery contender" today on his Twitter.

Not long ago, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige assured fans that we’d learn who’s directing and starring in Captain Marvel by the end of the summer, or by fall, at the latest. The studio officially confirmed Brie Larson’s casting last month at Comic-Con, when they welcomed the Oscar-winning actress to the MCU in Hall H, but they still hadn’t found a director for her upcoming solo adventure despite various rumors regarding potential candidates. That might change pretty soon, as the Captain Marvel director shortlist offers a few interesting options.

Not long ago, Kevin Feige assured fans that Marvel would reveal the director and star of Captain Marvel most likely before the end of summer, if not the fall at the latest. Following yesterday’s report that Oscar-winner Brie Larson is in early talks for the title role comes word of two directors on the list of contenders to helm Marvel’s first solo female superhero film.