Echo director Sydney Freeland says her trans and Navajo identity helped her connect with Maya Lopez.
"I think coming from multiple marginalized communities, I'm used to being misrepresented and misportrayed in media," Freeland, who is also Navajo, tells 12DOVE. "And so when I saw that this is a deaf and indigenous character – that was actually incredibly exciting for me because things that might be foreign or different or other to people come across as incredibly normal to me. That's the space I love to be in. That's the space I love to operate in."
The five-episode series picks up directly after the events of Hawkeye, and sees Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox) return to her hometown in Oklahoma where she must reconnect with her Native American roots and embrace the meaning of family and community in order to heal and move forward.
Maya is the first deaf, indigenous, and amputee superhero to be portrayed in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She and Clint Barton, AKA Hawkeye, briefly connect over his deafness in one ear, and he uses sign language to tell her the devastating news that propels the events of Echo forward.
"All of that being said, my personal experience helped inform my approach to this project," Freeland continues. "And because I'm not deaf, it allowed me to be open to people who did have that lived experience and who did have the expertise to come in and help us inform the narrative."
Each episode of Echo begins with a colorful vignette that explains the history of the Choctaw people. Freeland says that she and her team flew to Oklahoma and met with the Choctaw Nation prior to filming to ask permission and open a dialogue. This was crucial to Freeland, who is indigenous herself.
"Growing up, it was always exciting anytime you got to see a Native onscreen, whether it was Dances With Wolves or Smoke Signals. Anytime there was just a Native American character, you would flock to that and you would sort of savor it," Freeland says. "So to have an entire Marvel series that is led by an indigenous character, a deaf character – it's incredibly exciting. It's incredibly rewarding. I'm excited for people to meet Maya Lopez."
Echo hits Disney Plus and Hulu on January 9 and in the UK on January 10. Make sure you have your Disney Plus settings set to TV-MA. For more, check out our list of all the upcoming Marvel movies and shows that you need to know about.
