Okay, so I have read a few theories on who the great Andy Serkis could be portraying in the next installment of the Avengers and who knows, maybe further episodes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Theories on the subject have narrowed over the last twenty-four hours, since Ultron actor James Spader and Serkis motion-capture protege, suggested those present at the Avengers: Age of Ultron panel would have already viewed Serkis during the preview, sporting a beard. So the theories I have read since range the real Mandarin to the X-Man Beast.
The real Mandarin seems a great idea in my opinion, obviously the beard is the clue here and when you consider it alongside the many rumours involving the real Mandarin appearing in the movie at some point. The Beast theory is more unlikely, first off the rights issue is the major stumbler. Yes Beast has been a long-time Avenger ala Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, where he differs though is he is a MAJOR member of the X-Men. QS and SW are in my opinion considerably more important components of the Avengers than the X-Men. Then there's the beard reference, Beast doesn't have a beard as much as he's just plain furry. The one point I would give in the beast theory though is the motion-capture element. The Mandarin would be a perfunctory acting role while Beast would make the fullest use of Serkis repertoire. When you consider that Peter Jackson cast Serkis as both the titular ape and Lumpy the chef in King Kong, its clear that Serkis could feel a tad under appreciated as an actual on-set performer, in which case the Mandarin character (or any other human character for that matter) would play to any supposed ambitions.
Onto my highly unlikely theory, what if Serkis is playing Doctor Strange? Timing: check, beard: check, rumours that Strange could appear in A:AOU: check, bad-ass character that Serkis would own: check, fan-pleasing casting: check. I know it is unlikely, given that Feige has already stated that if he had nailed down the casting of Strange by Comic Con, he would have announced it but maybe they want to surprise us?
Regrettably, the most likely outcome is that of an inconsequential character that has no actual comic-book counterpart and will not appear again... but we can dream until we see the movie right? Anyone else have any theories regarding the Serkis character, no matter how terrible, I'd be interested to here them \/.
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