Not all heroes wear capes. That’s one thing Marvel Entertainment understands, and not just because its most famous characters don’t wear any capes at all. The new Disney+ television series Marvel’s Hero Project, in fact, is all about everyday heroes. Not your Spider-Man or your Captain America, but the kind of people who are making a difference in small but remarkable ways. During its first season alone, the documentary series has shone a spotlight on an 11-year-old who’s organizing child abuse marches, a 12-year-old trans girl championing LGBT-inclusive education in New Jersey, and a boy who co-founded an organization for supporting people with disabilities. Not only does the show highlight their achievements but they each get rewarded with their very own comic book.
One episode of the show centers on Daniella Benitez, a San Diego teen who’s become a driving force in her community. Living just a few miles away from Tijuana, Daniella’s story began when she first joined some volunteers on a trip across the border to help build a house for a family in Mexico. Its cost? $16,000. After seeing how much her involvement could help families in need, she began to take it upon herself to raise funds and help build as many affordable houses for Tijuana families as she could, joining volunteers from the nonprofit Build a Miracle organization. She began with the goal of raising money for one house a year, but she’s already far surpassed it.
“I felt so powerful that we are able to really change someone’s life,” she says in the episode, which dubs her “Dynamic Daniella.” And from the looks of it, she has no plan of stopping, further galvanizing her community and proving that local change can work across border lines. Take a look at a sneak peek of her episode below.
Dynamic Daniella’s Marvel’s Hero Project episode is available to stream February 7, 2020 on Disney+.
