This Oscar winner is the frontrunner to star in the first female-focused Marvel movie

Though Marvel Studios has had huge success in adapting classic comic-book characters into huge blockbuster movies, it hasn't given much attention to the comics' female heroes.

But that's about to change.

The long-awaited big-screen adaptation of Captain Marvel is eyeing recent Oscar winner Brie Larson ("Room") to play the role, according to Variety.

The trade says it's unknown where negotiations are currently, but Larson is the first choice and a source says she's leaning toward taking the part.

The movie follows Air Force pilot Carol Danvers, who is fused with alien DNA after an accident, giving her superpowers. Screenwriters Meg LaFauve ("Inside Out") and Nicole Perlman ("Guardians of the Galaxy") are attached, and The Hollywood Reporter stoked rumors that directors Niki Caro ("Whale Rider") and Jennifer Kent ("The Babadook") are contenders to helm the project.

Larson will next be seen in the latest King Kong big-budget spectacle, "Kong: Skull Island," coming out in 2017.

It's going to be a couple of years before we see a Captain Marvel movie. But it's very likely that Larson, or whoever plays the lead, will show up in a cameo first in another Marvel movie (like Spider-Man in "Captain America: Civil War").

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