Milana Vayntrub Cast as Squirrel Girl in Freeform’s New Warriors

Jill Pantozzi | July 10th, 2017

Marvel and Freeform’s New Warriors television series has hired some of its cast. They’ve found their Squirrel Girl in This Is Us actor Milana Vayntrub.

Vayntrub takes the lead role in this upcoming series, according to The Hollywood Reporter. We previously learned the Freeform (formerly ABC Family) show would be called New Warriors but that Squirrel Girl would be leading the cast of the comedy.

Besides a role on This Is Us, you may also know Vayntrub as the face of those AT&T TV commercials where she plays the helpful store clerk Lily or the “Subway Rat Woman” from Ghostbusters. She has a history in comedy so this seems like a nice fit. THR writes:

Baby Daddy grad Derek Theler will stay in business with Freeform after landing the male lead of Mister Immortal in Marvel’s first live-action scripted comedy. The duo lead the ensemble cast in the 10-episode series about six young people learning to cope with their abilities in a world where bad guys can be as terrifying as bad dates. Joining Vayntrub (This Is Us) are Jeremy Tardy as Night Thrasher; Calum Worthy as Speedball; Matthew Moy as Microbe and Kate Comer as Debrii.

Showrunner Kevin Biegel said, “I am thrilled beyond belief to be working with this incredible group of actors. They are funny, sincere, eager, charming and perfectly embody these characters. It’ll be a blast and an honor to create this show with each of them.” Marvel head of TV Jeph Loeb added: “We’re so lucky to have assembled such a diverse and incredibly talented cast. We can’t wait for the fans to see what’s in store when we unleash these iconic characters into the world!”

And yes, as THR notes, this does end some Squirrel Girl fan campaigns:

The casting caps an extensive process that featured a personal campaign from Stranger Things breakout Shannon Purser (aka Barb) — who sources say was also in the running. Parenthood grad Mae Whitman — an outspoken fan of Squirrel Girl — was also discussed, sources say, but her series regular commitment to NBC’s upcoming Good Girls made that conversation short, though sources say the character was written with the actress in mind.

THR has character/actor breakdowns on their site for everyone, you should definitely take a look. The important question remains: just how big a tail are they going to give Vayntrub?