Movies

Meet Tango and Nemo, the fluffy orange cats who play Goose in The Marvels

The MCU’s fuzziest interstellar hero returns, starring alongside Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, and Iman Vellani.

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Published on September 29, 2023 01:00PM EDT

The Marvels is a star-studded affair, uniting Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, and Samuel L. Jackson. But the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe also introduces two up-and-coming young actors — actors of the four-legged, fuzzy variety.

Goose the flerken makes her triumphant return in The Marvels, reuniting with Larson's interstellar hero Carol Danvers. Goose (named for the iconic Top Gun character) debuted in 2019's Captain Marvel, originally appearing as a harmless earth cat. But over time, Carol learns that Goose is actually a flerken, a dangerous, man-eating alien who can swallow enemies whole. The tiny orange heroine quickly became a fan favorite, and now, she's returning to the screen in The Marvels (out Nov. 10).

In the first film, Goose was primarily played by an orange tabby named Reggie, but since The Marvels relocated filming to the United Kingdom, Marvel producers reached out to cat trainer Jo Vaughan to find and train a replacement. Ultimately, she cast two identical orange tabbies: 11-year-old Tango and 4-year-old Nemo.

"There was no diva behavior [on set], but cats are cats," Vaughan tells EW with a laugh. "That's why you have two cats. So, if one goes, 'Do you know what? I'm not really feeling it today,' then you can switch to the other one. They both have their strengths and weaknesses, so they back each other up that way."

When they're not socializing with superheroes, both Nemo and Tango are ordinary cats living in ordinary homes. But Vaughan had to train both to perform basic tasks on command — tasks like hitting marks, following eye lines, and even jumping onto a standing actor's shoulder. She also worked closely with director Nia DaCosta, a certified "cat lover" who would work through scenes and give notes the way she would with human actors. Still, the two feline stars were easily distracted, which meant cast and crew had to be as quiet as possible on set.

"Cats are so different to dogs," Vaughan explains. "Cats are naturally quite nervous because that's what keeps them safe. So, you have to slowly teach them that nothing around is going to harm them or bother them. It is quite a slow process."

The trickiest scenes were when Carol and Goose had to interact: The Oscar-winning Larson is highly allergic to cats, so Vaughan or another stunt double would stand in for her, wearing an all-green suit that the VFX team could then edit out. "I'm still allergic," Larson previously told EW, in an interview conducted prior to the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike. "I hope that changes. But until it does, a lot of the CGI budget goes towards me and the cat."

Jo Vaughan and Goose on the set of Marvel Studios' THE MARVELS — Cat trainer Jo Vaughan rehearses with a feline actor for 'The Marvels'. Laura Radford/MARVEL

Nemo and Tango also aren't the only feline actors in the film: The trailer teases a whole herd of kittens, cascading down the stairs of a spaceship. (Or might they be flerkens?) Executive producer Mary Livanos previously told EW that "it was like Christmas when we had our bigger kitten scenes," with extra crew members showing up just to sneak cuddles.

"It was massive fun," Vaughan adds. "Everybody turned up to watch the kittens. How can you not? They were so much fun — and naughty! Sometimes you'd go, 'Okay, we've got nine of them… Where's the 10th one?'"

All of the kittens and cats have since returned home, living out their normal, non-Hollywood lives of scratching posts and snoozing in the sun. Vaughan says the 11-year-old Tango is retiring after The Marvels, a well-deserved break after one "last big project."

Still, are Nemo and Tango ready for their close-up? Are they aware of their impending stardom, counting down the days until The Marvels hits theaters? Not exactly, Vaughan says with a laugh.

"What I find really funny about the cats is that they are living a pet life," the trainer explains. "They've got however many fans of Goose around the world, and they're literally oblivious. They're just off doing their own thing."

The Marvels is in theaters Nov. 10. For more, read EW's full cover story on the film.

Make sure to check out EW's Fall Movie Preview cover story on The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes — as well as all of our 2023 Fall TV Preview content, releasing through Sept. 29.

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