Marvel's Hero Project (2019–…): Season 1, Episode 2 - Incredible Elijah - full transcript

[narrator]
At Marvel, our stories and our superheroes

are inspired by real-life heroes.

So, the editors of
some of our best-known comics

have come together
to work on a special project:

to find and tell the stories of kids
doing the extraordinary,

helping communities near and far,

and changing the world.

These are the kids who will inspire
our stories for years to come.

[Elijah] Children have a voice

and we have the same exact opportunities
as everybody else.

I'd love to feel that I made a difference.



Don't let the world count you out.

[narrator] Elijah is already a hero.

Now we bring his story to the world
with the surprise of a lifetime.

Making him into a Marvel superhero,

immortalized in his very own comic,

as a member of Marvel's Hero Project.

[narrator] They're everyday kids...

who have accomplished the amazing.

Now their true stories...

will reveal the heroes that live among us.

This is Marvel's Hero Project.

[woman] I think he'd be into it.

- [man 1] Pink glasses...
- [woman] Yeah.

[man 2] Guys, I gotta bring
a great kid to the table today.



People are going to absolutely see

why he was a candidate
for the Hero Project.

I am so excited to talk today
about this kid, Elijah.

He's one of the most electric humans
I've ever met.

This 11-year-old kid
is just ready to change the world.

You see the work that he's doing

and you understand
how powerful his voice can be,

and how much he wants to help
other kids have that same power.

I mean, he has such a light inside of him.

Yeah and when I think of characters in
the Marvel Universe, who shine a light,

I immediately think of Johnny Storm.
You know, the Human Torch.

And that's kinda how I feel about Elijah.

Like, this kid walks into a room
and that room lights up.

Like, this kid's on fire.

I feel like a fan-girl
a little bit around him,

because he's so... he is very magnetic.

And he has such an incredible personality,

and he's doing such important things
and he's so young.

Yeah, it is an empathy to him.

You know, he sees the emotions
that other people have.

- Mantis.
- Yes.

- From Guardians of the Galaxy?
- Yeah.

- The way she feels the emotion.
- Yes. And it's hard with kids.

It's scary sometimes
when you don't feel safe,

when you don't feel you have someone
you can count on.

Elijah has that power, similar to Mantis,

to get people to unlock
what they're really feeling.

He is everything we're looking for,
I think, for the Marvel Hero Project.

And I cannot wait to tell his story.

[Elijah] Our children are the future!

Our children are the future!

It is not a time to be sad and drury-eyed.

But it is a time to rise up.

And I believe that
if we want to see a change,

we can't just let it happen.

[crowd cheering, applauding]

[woman]
There's so many things that Elijah can do.

It's how do I make sure
that kids' voices are heard

and that no more kids are hurt.

We know that when one falls, we all fall.

But when one rises, we all rise.

[crowd cheering]

Elijah, in a lot of ways,
works to defy the stereotypes

of a young African American male
in rural North Carolina.

And I think that's part
of what makes Elijah special

is breaking those barriers and saying,

"I want to see beyond,
and understand beyond,

what unfortunately is a barrier for
lots of kids in small rural communities.

[Elijah] A lot of people say
my brain was just wired differently.

So, the fact that I'm different,
I do like.

Some people say, like,
"Different is so bad."

I believe that normal is boring though.

[giggling]

Probably even at two or three,
he loved to learn.

He was excited to memorize shapes

and he was excited to memorize colors.

- [Jessica] What is this?
- Star!

- [Jessica] And what color is the star?
- Blue!

[Elijah] I mean, my family is basically
like my supporters.

And I think, we support each other,
and we have to sacrifice for each other.

But I mean, that's part of being a family.

[Jessica] There is just a lot of love.

We're going to be there for each other.

On the good days
and the bad days.

[Jessica]

[Marvin]

[Jessica]

[Marvin]

[Jessica] Mm-hmm.

[director]

Oh, he was a good man.

[Jessica] Hey, daddy.

[Malik] He's sneezing. [giggles]

[Jessica] He loved being with his kids.

If he wasn't at work,
he was at home with his family.

Give me a kiss.

High five.

What I do remember
is that he was very loving.

And, like, everybody loved him.

I was doing dishes

and I heard a loud noise in the bathroom.

He had a massive heart attack.

And he died.

[Elijah] I lost someone that was
supposed to be a key point in my life.

[Jessica] So, guys,
do you remember how you responded

when you found out daddy died?

Well, I can tell you that.

I remember everybody was crying.

Elijah, you crawled into my lap
and you said,

"Why are you sad?" He's gone to heaven.

We should all be excited.

And I know it's hard to think like that,
but it helped me at the time.

I think that he would have
the perfect excuse in life.

You know, my dad died
when I was only three,

and I don't have a father figure,

and I just don't know why,

but I feel like
it's only given him more strength.

[girl] It's weird, but I like it.

[all singing] ♪ Gotta read
Baby read, say what, gotta read ♪

♪ Baby read, say what ♪

♪ The more I read, the more I know ♪

♪ The more I know, the smarter I grow ♪

♪ The smarter I grow ♪

♪ The stronger my voice when
Speaking my mind and making a choice ♪

[Elijah] One day, there was a kid.

She's rubbing her leg
and I'm like, "Are you okay?"

And she was like, "Yeah, it just hurts."
I'm like, "What hurts?"

Pulls her shorts up a little bit.
I see this big red thing.

And I'm like, "Okay, that's not natural."

So, I'm thinking,
"What happened, did you fall?"

And she's like, "No,
but my mom and my dad got in a fight

and he was so mad that he hit me."

I'm like, "I'm so sorry."

I've never really seen any harsh,
harsh acts of this really.

I'm kinda scared, actually.

She would never tell an adult.

People have a tendency
with anything that's uncomfortable

to not discuss and hide
and keep things within their families.

You have all these families that say,
you know,

"Don't tell our secrets
and don't take it outside the house."

I told her that it is really,
really important

that you tell someone right now.

I need to stop this.
This is not okay with me.

This is putting a burden on my heart.

And I thought, "I can make a change."

And yes, I'm a kid,
but kids do have a voice.

He came home the next day and said,
"She told me that she told someone,

and I know she's going to get help."

That was a good day.

That was a good day.

And if one little girl gets help,
that's something.

[Jessica] Open, open, open, open, open.

- Where's your Bible?
- I have it. It's ready.

[Jessica] He was called a preacher
before he was ever ordained.

"Hey, little preacher."
And, "Hey, preacher."

Focus on your message
and focus on your music, Boo boo.

[Elijah] Okay.

I still remember to this day.
I was like, "Hey, Mom,

I think I want to give
like a little sermon."

And I was five.

So, of course she's not gonna
take me seriously right away.

And she was like,
"Okay, what do you want to do?"

I'm like,
"I kinda wanna preach a little bit."

And then she turned around and said,
"Okay, Elijah."

What's an epiphany?

[Jessica] An epiphany is when you finally
get a great idea or it opens up.

Can you use it in a sentence?

I had an epiphany
when I saw my friends get hurt.

[Jessica] And...

And I started to make it right.

- [Jessica] Are you ready?
- Ready enough.

[Jessica] Ready enough.

[man] ...with our very own
Minister Elijah Lee.

Minister Lee is also active
in the community,

speaking out against child abuse
and injustice.

- Amen, amen, amen.
- [congregation applauding]

Let's give God the glory.

For so many years,
I've just been sitting here

and I'm tired of watching
my people get hurt.

And I'm tired of seeing my children cry.

[congregation] Amen!

I don't mean to scare anybody,
but there is child abuse.

Here's this child,
who is growing up with so much sadness.

So, I say to my fellow young people:

"Don't let the world count you out."

[cheering, applauding]

He loves heroes.
He loves people who inspire people.

[Elijah] Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
I kind of gravitated to him

for multiple of reasons.

He was a social advocate.

And he looked like somebody
I could go to, like, for faith.

Also, I admire his patience for people.

One thing Elijah struggles with

is the voice of children
not being respected and heard.

I'll never forget the day
we were sitting on the couch

and he said to me,
"I'm gonna lead a march."

And I said, "Okay."

You know, I'm thinking, "Do that at 35."

And he said, "No,
I'm gonna lead a march right away."

And I said, "You're gonna do it.
I'll support you,

but I'm not doing the legwork.
What's it gonna be about?"

And he said, "Child abuse."

And I'm gonna make sure it's heard.

[man] Thank you everyone for coming.

We have a young man
that has been here about a year back,

Mr. Elijah Lee.

Mr. Lee came and spoke to us
about a child abuse issue

that was very near and dear to his heart.

And Elijah has come back here
again tonight.

Just come forward
and we look forward to hearing from you.

Good evening to our city council members,

to everybody in their respectful places
and others.

First, like the mayor said,
for some of you who don't know me,

my name is Elijah Lee.

I'm an 11-year-old,
fifth grade student at KIPP GCP.

I'm here tonight to let you know

that my generation will stand up
for what we believe is right.

I believe that every child should have...

[man] I've got a special guest
in the studio with me this morning.

Elijah Lee. Good morning, Elijah.
How are you, my man?

I'm good. Good morning.

[Jessica] He had to go down
and get his permit secured.

Those permits are written in his writing.

He had to, you know,
put up the money for things.

Hey.

What's up, homeboy?
Come on. What's going on, boy?

- Preacher man.
- [Elijah] All right.

I love the fact that
it was all put on him.

And he stepped up and he made it happen.

Yeah, you can hang it right in the window.

- [man] Okay.
- [barber] All right.

Good luck, man, we'll see you there.
All right.

March 2nd.

Well, I think this is a great thing.

People can just show up
if they wanna be involved with this walk

on Saturday, March the second.

Yeah, so we also encourage you
to actually make signs.

- That's a great thing you're doing.
- [Elijah] Thank you.

[woman] Mm-hmm.

[laughing]

[radio dj] Again, stand up, speak up.

Child Abuse Awareness march.

Make your big signs, come out,
and we're gonna march.

[Jessica] Elijah, really think about it.

You have worked so hard up to today. Okay?

You have done all this prep
and so, like, today is it.

This is it.

[Elijah]
What if only three people show up?

Anyway, we're going to march.

And when you speak in front of them,
that's what they're gonna remember.

[girl] I understand why you're stressed.

- [Elijah] Mm-hmm.
- But these people care for you

and love you.

Just... just breathe.

[grunts]

[Jessica]
Whether there's ten people there,

whether there's 10,000 people there,

I'll always be as proud of you
and I'll always love you.

And your dad would be
so proud of you today.

Mommy always tells us
that daddy's there for the big occasions.

So, I do wish he was here physically,
but do I know he is here spiritually? Yes.

- Ooh, that sun's beautiful.
- [Jessica] Do you feel good about the sun?

- Yea, I can feel it. It's warming up.
- [Jessica laughs]

[Elijah] Testing.

He's showing leadership today

because he is exposing it to the world
instead of keeping it to himself,

and standing up for what's right.

[girl]
He's helping a lot of people right now.

Now they know, like,
they can tell somebody

and they can know that
they don't have to be scared.

So, it's about 12:20-ish

and so the vibe is really good.
I'm anxious, nervous, excited.

Elijah just wants the world
to be a better place

and, I mean, how could you not be excited?

[all chanting]
Our children are the future!

[Sutton] The opportunity for
kindergartners, for third graders,

to say, "I participated in a march"
is huge.

You know, "I made my sign,
I went and marched.

And I did that led under the guise
of an 11-year-old."

[Elijah] Educate! Protect! Help! Educate!

[woman] Children throughout our area
see today that they are not alone.

Child abuse has a profound effect
on the rest of a person's life.

We need to give Elijah
Lee a round of applause

for having the bravery
and the commitment

to speak out against child abuse.

We must take care of our children.

We must not forsake them!
We must not give up on them!

- Because we are a community.
- [protesters] Yes!

- [Elijah] Children are not alone!
- [woman 1] That's right!

[Elijah] Today I make a call for peace.

I'm not asking for it,
but I'm having it and I'm taking it.

[woman 1] You better say that, Elijah!
You better say that right there!

Ghandi once said, "Be the change
you wish to see in the world."

- [woman 1] Okay.
- [woman 2] Oh, yeah.

[Elijah] Be the person
that rises against something.

[cheering, applauding]

Be the one who rises
so we can all rise once again.

Thank you.

[cheering]

It felt almost like
you were speaking to the world.

And, like,
I can't imagine now how King felt

when he spoke in front of
all those people.

Our children are the future!
Our children are the future!

One of the girls,
she went as far as to writing me a note

and that really, really meant a lot to me.

"Dear Elijah.
Thank you for always helping me.

You always talk to me when I feel sad.

You are smart and nice.

You show integrity
by doing the right thing.

I can trust you.
Thank you for checking on me.

You are a good friend."

Aw.

It was amazing to see how grateful she was

and it really, like, meant
that I've done something good

and I just need to continue doing it
for a lot more people.

At KIPP we're taught
that integrity is doing the right thing

even when nobody is looking.

And she saw that
I was doing the right thing

when, like, nobody was,
like, forcing me to.

One thing I love is to be able to
feel like I've made a difference.

It's a small one, but it's still there.

And now I have something to build on.

So, I have my platform,
I just gotta add the building blocks.

People have come up to me a lot
and just said,

"Oh, he's like a ray of sunshine.
He's just a light."

And I think that there is a light on him

and I think there's a hope for our future.

People have thanked me and I'm like,
"Don't worry about it.

I'm just doing my job as,
number one, a citizen,

and number two, as a child."

My activism never dies down,
my passion never dies down,

just because that's always in me.

There's always justice and kindness
in the world.

There... It just needs to be brought out.

Oh, man, Elijah...

this kid is so fantastic.

Yeah. Such an incredible young man.

I feel so much warmth
just listening to him.

The fact that it's not just about fighting
for justice and kindness,

that it exists in people already.

He's been bringing that kindness out
of people in his community for years,

but now we have the chance
to bring it into the world

by making him part of the Hero Project.

And, you know, we thought that
the best way to be able to do that

was this idea that his mother said, right?

His mother believes
that when you see Elijah,

there's this sense of light around him.

- Yeah.
- And that is his visual story, right?

I think the entire team did
an amazing job bringing that to life

by letting him see
people's emotional auras.

- It's amazing.
- Yeah.

[Amanat]
But he has this lightness in himself

that he has extended outwards
to everybody else.

The other half of the story is him
activating those powers in other people

and using them to do good in the world.

And while I feel like we did
a really good job with making sure

he looked sort of superpowered
and very fantastic,

we also wanted to make sure
he looked like him, right?

- [Lewis] Yes.
- Was as authentic as possible,

so, you know, his facial details,
his skin tone,

that was incredibly important.

His personality is so present
in this book.

You know, the story opens
with him playing on the playground,

and he's counting too quickly,
and that's such an Elijah thing. He...

- Slow down!
- Yeah, yeah. I'm...

I'm amazed we didn't give him super speed
as a superpower.

Just his sense of, like, joy and love

and I feel like that in itself is almost...
is what is lifting him up.

And that's why I love
this splash page so much.

- It's beautiful.
- Because it's so much about him

and how positive and hopeful he is,

and at the same time
how he's touched other people

and how they're driving into action
because of it,

which is so incredibly important.

I'm so excited for him
to get his hands on this book

and for the reveal
that we've got planned for him.

He thinks he's giving a speech
at a sister school in DC,

but little does he know he's actually
gonna be delivering a speech

on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial,

where Martin Luther King, Jr., himself,
delivered the "I Have a Dream" address.

Yes.

[Lewis] His brother, Marvin,
is also gonna be there,

and he's gonna surprise Elijah
coming home from college

for the first time in months.

So, all of Elijah's dreams
are coming true today

and he's going to get to be
a part of the Marvel Universe.

- Marvin.
- What's up, man?

- [Marvin] How are you?
- [Elijah] I'm good. [crying]

[Marvin] What's up?

- Wanna know why I'm here?
- Yes.

- I'm here to hear your speech.
- You came.

- But instead of doing it at the school...
- [Elijah] Uh-huh.

...you're gonna do it up there.

Oh, wait. What?

[Marvin] You're gonna give your speech
right there on the Lincoln Memorial.

You ready? [chuckles]

- Yes.
- Go do it. Get it done!

[Sutton] You got this, Elijah!

[crowd cheering, applauding]

Good afternoon.

Today I take my place in history
to find justice for children everywhere!

We know the famous words
of the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Today I would like to borrow his words

and declare change for our young people.

'Cause I have a dream that one day

our young people will find
the safety and security

that they deserve as human beings.

[crowd cheering]

We stand together to say "no"
to child abuse

and we say "yes" to love.

Thank you.

[cheering]

- I'm so proud of you.
- Thank you.

You're our hero.

- [man] You've inspired me.
- [Elijah] Thank you.

Thank you so much for everything.

I would like to first thank you all
so much for just being here to support me.

I know that it is hot outside
but I would like...

- Hey, Elijah.
- Yes?

So, I'm glad that
you're telling your friends thanks...

- Uh-huh.
- ...but there's one more surprise.

What? Really?

[gasps]

- Are you a fan of Marvel?
- Yes.

He's getting it.

- Are you ready?
- Yes.

- Are you really ready?
- Okay! Come on!

It's Marvel.

Okay. "Dear, Elijah.

Today is a very special day.

Standing on the spot where your hero,
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,

spoke out against injustice,

you bravely shared your own words.

We have witnessed the strength
of your convictions

and admire you for it.

You not only listen, you act.

You stand for everything
that makes a Marvel superhero.

Just like Black Panther or Spider-Man,

you have shown that you are
a true champion determined to help others.

Now your friends at Marvel
have a surprise for you."

[gasps]

[gasping]

- [Jessica] Hold on.
- [Elijah] What is it?

"There's a box in front of you.

When you open it,

you'll begin your initiation
into an incredible group

whose compassion and advocacy
fill us with awe.

Welcome to the Marvel Hero Project."

I'm scared. I don't know what is in it.

[gasps]

[children] Whoa!

[Jessica] "Take out the jacket.

It will serve as a symbol

of your honored place
on the Marvel Hero Project team."

"And to show you how much
you've inspired all of us,

we are making a donation, in your honor,

to an organization
that supports keeping kids safe

in the amount of $10,000."

That's gonna help those kids.

Thank you.

Okay,
so there's one last surprise for you.

"In the box is
an instant collector's item,

The Incredible Elijah number one,
a comic book inspired by you, Elijah.

[children] Whoa!

[Jessica] We hope that in these pages
you see yourself

in the same way that
the mighty Marvel Bullpen sees you,

as a true superhero.

Welcome to the Marvel Hero Project.
Your friends at Marvel."

[cheering]

[gasping]

When I saw the envelope,
I immediately, like, just gasped

because I saw "Marvel."

Of all the people in
the whole entire world,

they think I'm a superhero.

The comic was nothing
in my realm of expectation.

I mean,
I would never have thought of that.

The care the people took
in creating the image.

It was very him.

[boy] That's cool.

[girl] Sure is.

When I saw the cover,

I noticed how they animated me,
I guess, as kind of glowing.

That really represents me
because I'm overall a really happy,

funny, caring person.

[Jessica] That's my favorite part.

My favorite part is the last part
where it says,

"That kid is one in a million."

What Elijah is doing is really special.

It's really powerful,
and I'm really proud of him.

[Elijah] I'm feeling overwhelmed.

I'm feeling excited. I'm feeling happy.

But this is only the beginning for me.

I'm still gonna do more for sure.