Nova explained — Who is the Marvel hero?

In wake of the news surrounding a Nova MCU adaptation, here’s everything you need to know about the undderated Marvel superhero.

Though Marvel might be stripping back and focusing on quality over quantity (or so they say), that hasn’t stopped them from teasing new adaptations for some classic heroes. That said, some might be characters you’ve never even heard of.

Enter: Nova. It’s recently been teased that Nova might be the star of a future Marvel project, and as such, fans are quickly flocking to learn as much as they can about the hero. Yes, the future of Marvel movies might be a little unpredictable right now, but it’s worth getting to know this relatable kid who went from hero-to-zero.

So, who is Nova? Here’s everything you need to know.

Who is Nova?

Nova is a Marvel superhero that had his own comic book series — he was a member of the intergalactic police force known as the Nova Corps. His human alias was Richard Rider, a high school student from New York.

Nova was first created in 1966 by Marv Wolfman in #3 of Super Adventures. However, the character as we know him got his official debut in 1976, in The Man Called Nova #1. Originally designed as a homage to Spider-Man, the story followed Richard Rider, a young high school student who was chosen to take up the mantle of the Nova Corps hero.

He was selected by Rhomann Dey, the sole surviving member of the Corps before he died. Granted the powers of a Nova Centurion, Rider had to figure out his new status and abilities on his own. Over time, he went on to work with the likes of Spider-Man and Thor.

Richard Rider is your typical high school student. Average grades, an inferiority complex, and reverts to humor in order to disguise his insecurity in the face of his much smarter brother Robbie.

When it comes to powers, Nova has the usual deal: superhuman strength, flight, speed, and durability. He can also absorb any energy used against him and re-release it. There’s also strength in his uniform, the standard Xandarian StarCorps version. Resistant to damage and with built-in life-support, it becomes an important part of his identity.

Is there going to be a Nova movie?

Marvel head Brad Winderbaum has confirmed that the studio is currently in early development for a Nova project, though it sounds like this will be a show rather than a movie.

Marvel’s head of streaming, animation, and television Winderbaum spoke to ComicBook.com, saying: “We love Nova. We are in really early development on Nova.

“We have a new system behind-the-scenes at Marvel Studios. We’re more like a traditional studio now. We’re developing more than we actually will produce. There are plans to develop Nova. I love Nova, too, I love Rich Rider, too. I hope it gets to the screen. The world is always chaos. There’s always things. You gotta conjure these things to make them happen but I would love to see a Nova show, one day.”

Who will play Nova?

While nobody’s been confirmed to play the role of Nova just yet, fans are speculating that it could be Ryan Gosling following the rumor that he’s been cast in an undisclosed Marvel role.

This all comes from the X account @MyTimeToShineH, who shared the scoop on March 13 that Ryan Gosling had been cast in the MCU. While no official confirmation has followed, it’s enough to get fans thinking that Gosling could be filling Nova’s shoes. The timing is very coincidental, indeed.

However, Richard Rider is a high school student, so this does cause a potential issue with this particular casting theory. But fans are circulating other names too, including those of Charlie Hunnam and Dylan O’Brien. Of course, this is all wishing for now, and until we get more details from Marvel, the project is still just a possibility.

We’ll be sure to keep you updated on this and other Marvel projects in development. In the meantime, check out our guides for the Spider-Man 4 release date, the Blade MCU movie release date, and the Thunderbolts release date.