Marvel’s best new character from 2022 needs a Disney+ spinoff ASAP

In a cameo-of-the-week sitcom, it can be hard for a guest to stand out—especially when most of those cameos are pre-existing superheroes with passionate fans.

So it came as a surprise when the most popular character at Marvel’s She-Hulk wasn’t Daredevil, The Abomination, or even Mr. Immortal. Instead, it was a loud woman from Fort Lauderdale whose only power is an odd way to spell her name.

Played by Patty Guggenheim, Madisynn King earned her place in the MCU with her first line of dialogue. When a sneaky magician asks her name, she replies, “Madisynn, with two N’s, a Y, but it’s not where you think.”

The rest was history, and by the end of the episode, Madisynn was best friends with the Sorcerer Supreme, whom she affectionately refers to as “Wongers.”

“It was funny the first time I said it during practice,” Guggenheim recalls when asked about the nickname’s origins. “He was like blushing. It was so sweet.”

Talking to Reverse as part of our Scene thieves year-end series, Guggenheim shares the story of how she got the role, how Madisynn went viral and what comes next.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

How was the character first described to you?

[Director Kat Coiro] basically said, “This is a party girl. She’s just a drunken party girl having so much fun.” I think she knew I could get into it pretty quickly because I had worked with her on a project where I play a similar character. I knew very little about the world, what I wanted to do, or who I wanted to work with. But I was just excited that she was thinking about me.

How different or similar would you say you are to the character?

Honestly, it depends on the day. I’ve probably been more Madisynn at different times in my life. I’d say I’ve grown from… no, no, I wouldn’t. I would say it depends on the day. You know how you can turn the dial to be like a few degrees of yourself in a different direction depending on your surroundings? I could probably show up to Madisynn after a few cocktails pretty easily.

Was there a lot of secrecy surrounding the show and your character?

I knew it was for She-Hulk, but that’s pretty much it. I was somewhat familiar with the premise, and I knew I was going to be working with a magician as part of a magical act gone wrong.

They used a very funny name for the character which ended up being Wong. It was like Jacoby or something and I said, “Who’s Jacoby?” I googled everything until I realized they just made it up. I couldn’t put the pieces together.

You and Wong are so great together. Whose idea was it for you to call him Wongers?

It was in the script. It was probably Melissa Hunter or Jessica Gao. I think they nailed it in the writers room. I don’t know if it was Jessica or Melissa, but they are both extremely brilliant, funny minds. Melissa wrote this script and did a really good job of putting a lot of stuff in there.

Even just Madisynn spells her name. It’s so very specific to a character and such a useful thing for an actor given a script. You think, “Oh, I know, I know this person. I know what this is. I know this person who puts seven I’s on I think.” So yeah, it was all written.

Wongers, I mean, it was funny when I first said it during the rehearsal. He was like blushing. It was so sweet. He said, “Oh my God, people are going to love this.”

Was there something you did that didn’t work out?

I wish I could see the whole tag sequence because we went on to brunch for about 30 minutes. He just didn’t know what brunch was. So I asked him if he knew about brunch and what you do at brunch. They didn’t need it in the show, but I personally would have loved to see it, because sometimes when you like to improvise like that, you go a little dark in parts. I just wish I knew what I said.

When did you realize your character had gone viral?

One of my friends sent me something from Facebook that her friend from high school had posted that was “Madisynn 2024”. It looks like a president’s logo, but it’s for a new Marvel show — anyway, someone made this fun graphic.

And she said, “Someone from high school in Minnesota sent me, just posted this on Facebook!”

Will Madisynn return to the MCU?

I think she could. I know nothing. You know, it’s Marvel. But I definitely think she has the potential to get in. I love that she is best friends with a wizard. It kind of feels like the possibilities are endless. And I really love hearing what the fans come up with. It’s really fun to hear. But yes, I hope so. It’s a total dream.

Is there anything else you have coming out that you can tell me about?

I have a film out on December 9th. It’s called The Binge 2: It’s A Wonderful Binge, and it’s a really funny holiday comedy, like really wild. There are so many comedians in it. It will just be like a real party. So it will be fun.

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