She-Hulk Took Inspiration from Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag

The creative team behind Disney+’s upcoming legal comedy She-Hulk: Attorney at Law shared that they found unexpected inspiration in Phoebe Waller Bridge’s fourth-wall-breaking sitcom Fleabag.

She-Hulk head writer Jessica Gao told GamesRadar that, while developing the voice of the series, "[the team] talked a lot about Fleabag." Gao mentioned an admiration the writers held for both Fleabag's irreverence and nuanced exploration of rage from the perspective of a single woman navigating her thirties. The trailer for She-Hulk, shared with fans at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, even featured moments in which Tatiana Maslany's Jennifer Walters seemingly quipped an inner monologue toward the audience.

However, Fleabag has inspired the She-Hulk creators in more than just the borrowing of storytelling conventions employed by Waller-Bridge in her landmark Prime Video comedy. In the same interview, She-Hulk's director, Kat Coiro, spoke about the upcoming scale of Jennifer Walters' story in the context of the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. "What happens in between those movies when these characters just have to live their lives, when they have to go on dates, when they have to go grocery shopping, when they have to see their family at a reunion?" Coiro said.

She-Hulk Is in Her Fleabag Era

Dating is an area the She-Hulk writers were particularly interested in exploring with Jennifer Walters, moments of which can likewise be spotted in the series' SDCC trailer. Coiro explained that she, much like Waller-Bridge, aimed to mine the world of online dating for all of its awkward glory. "I loved seeing that her dating life was just as much of a stress as potentially becoming one of the Avengers," Coiro shared.

With WandaVision, Marvel had the opportunity to play in the sandbox of American sitcoms throughout the decades and She-Hulk likewise borrows from a wealth of television influences to bring its story to the screen. Fleabag is not the only series that the She-Hulk writers have mentioned taking influence from when crafting their story. '90s legal dramedy Ally McBeal has fittingly been named as an influence on the series and SDCC’s She-Hulk posters paid homage to another fictional lawyer in Better Call Saul's Saul Goodman.

Aside from its deep well of beloved television influences, She-Hulk appears to be chock-full of treats for MCU and Marvel Comic fans alike. From the debut of villain Titania, played by Jameela Jamil to the return of Charlie Cox as Daredevil, She-Hulk invites a veritable buffet of beloved characters to play in Jennifer Walters' world.

The wait for She-Hulk is not much longer, as the series will smash its way onto Disney+ on Aug. 17.