Another Canadian is joining the MCU

The Marvel Cinematic Universe just got a fresh new face and she's from Markham, Ontario! Deadline announced that Iman Vellani has joined the MCU in its latest project—Ms. Marvel. Vellani will play the titular character in the TV series which will air on Disney+.

Vellani also shared the exciting news on (what appears to be a brand new) Instagram Wednesday. "Speechless and excited! Wish me luck," the 18-year-old captioned the post.

The Ms. Marvel TV series has been a much-anticipated one and the Deadline report reiterates that the search for the perfect lead was long and hard. It's no wonder, considering the gravity of the role. Ms. Marvel, aka Kamala Khan, is a Pakistani-American teen and when she was introduced in the comics in 2014, she became the first Muslim character to lead her own Marvel comic. When she makes her Disney+ debut, she'll also become the MCU's first onscreen Muslim superhero.

This new gig is a pretty big first for Iman too—it's the actress's first major Hollywood production! She joins other Canadian stars fronting Marvel projects including Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), who will portray Marvel's first major Asian superhero, and Tatiana Maslany who was announced this month as the lead for the upcoming Disney+ She-Hulk series. Ms. Marvel may also appear in future Marvel blockbusters in addition to the TV series, if previous suggestions by Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige are to be believed.

Vellani may be new to the Hollywood scene, but she first stuck her toe in the festival circuit at last year's Toronto International Film Festival where she offered her expertise to the TIFF Next Wave Committee. As one of 12 teens tasked with selecting films relevant to a younger, more progressive audience, Vellani chose Minhal Baig's Hala as her pick—the story of an American Muslim teen trying to balance the pulls between her two often conflicting cultures.

"We want stories from different genders and different countries and different people," Vellani said at the time.

"I think [it]'s a really important film to see when you want to take a good look at a young member of society who's just trying to fit in to the best of both worlds."