Isabela Merced on Landing the Hawkgirl Role in Superman and Her Audition Process

Landing the Hawkgirl Role

• 🎯 Isabela Merced shares her journey to being cast as Hawkgirl in the upcoming Superman movie, a role she initially didn't expect to pursue.
• 💡 Despite not being a childhood fan of Superman, she became a fan after seeing the movie and praised the filmmakers' work.
• 🌟 A major draw for her was the opportunity to work with James Gunn, whom she admires for his past culturally significant films like Guardians of the Galaxy.

The Audition Process

• 🎭 Merced describes auditioning four times for the role, initially sending in a self-tape while filming another project.
• 🎬 The casting process involved using kooky character names and dialogue that wasn't final, a common practice to maintain secrecy.
• 🎤 A callback involved a Zoom call with James Gunn and Peter Saffron, where Gunn complimented her raspy voice, finding it fitting for a character like Hawkgirl.

Camera Test and Casting

• 🎥 A significant part of the process was a camera test in Los Angeles, where she experienced full makeup, hair, and costume fittings.
• 🤝 This test included performing a scene on a set with Nathan Fillion (as Guy Gardner) and Edi Gathegi (as Mr. Terrific), making it feel like actual filming.
• 🏋️‍♀️ The day also involved stunt training to assess her physicality as a fighter and extensive costume fittings and 3D scanning.

Emotional Rollercoaster of Casting

• 🎢 Merced admits to managing her expectations carefully, having learned that roles can be lost even after seeming certain.
• 🧠 She describes her approach as a way to avoid the emotional toll of constant hope and disappointment, though she acknowledges it might not be the healthiest coping mechanism.
• 🎉 The final confirmation came when James Gunn called her into his trailer, where producers offered her the role, leading to an emotional moment where she expressed her excitement to tell her mom.

Juggling Multiple Projects

• ✈️ Merced discusses the demanding filming schedule, including nine months of shooting for Superman and simultaneously working on other projects like The Last of Us, Madame Web, and Alien.
• 🌍 She found that the spiritual aspect of flying and being in different cities helped her transition between characters, likening it to a "Hannah Montana" moment of shedding one persona for another.