Those of you who checked my previous fan casts will know for my casts I’ve taken on a bit more a generic view with casting, those of you who don’t, just to make it clear; rather than cast one specific film entry in a franchise I decided to cast of characters I’d expect to be around in a ‘5 year’ window of the Marvel universe/existence of the Avengers (yes, I’m inspired by the New 52), and who will hopefully crop up in Marvel’s future films.
So, Daredevil; doesn’t seem like Marvel intend to touch the character anytime soon, but if given the right director and tone, Daredevil could very well be Marvel’s Batman. It’s because of this that I’d like for the next Daredevil film to be largely influenced by Batman Begins. Essentially, it should be dark and gritty and slightly fantastical but should allow for some lighter moments than Batman films, as Daredevil is a lighter/happier character. Anyway, with the film, just also want to mention rather than an origin I’d like to be introduced to a young Daredevil who’s been active for a while, so have cast accordingly. Personally, I like the idea of a Daredevil who’s been operating as an urban legend since his late teens and only becomes more ‘public’ after the Avengers assemble; I personally think this’d do nothing but build a richer MCU.
___________________________ Charlie Hunnam as Matt Murdock/Daredevil Hunnam has notoriously been fan cast for a variety of different comic book related roles, whilst majority of them work some of them don’t. Ignoring that, out of all the comic book characters I could picture Hunnam as Daredevil was the first (and best choice) that came to mind. Hunnam can bring a good balance of grit and sensitivity to the role. He’s proven himself to be a badass leading man with his work in
Sons of Anarchy and
Pacific Rim and is clearly talented and charismatic capable of even elevating simple projects as seen in
Deadfall. End of the day, he’s a talented actor and knows how to handle himself and look good doing it so I think he more than appropriate to play the man without fear.
Anyway, with the suit, as expected the above image is what I hope primarily inspires the character’s next big screen look. However, after checking through some fan art, deviantART’s Kizer’s take on the character is also something I think would be a great influence for the character’s look –
Click Here to See Josh Brolin as Jack ‘The Devil’ Murdock Brolin like Hunnam is another pretty badass actor who can balance grit and sensitivity very well. The fact that he’s pretty damn talented and looks like a tough and gruff badass just further reinforces why I think he’d be perfect in the role.
Zachary Knighton as Franklin ‘Foggy’ Nelson Knighton is a pretty cool actor, I’ve seen him in a few things now and it’s clear he a talented actor. I think he could bring a good balance of drama and humour to the role and just overall serve very well as Matt’s best friend/closest confidante; his work in
Flash Forward and
Happy Endings is a clear testament to his abilities.
Ambyr Childers as Karen Page Admittedly, I haven’t seen Childers in much but she’s left a lasting impression on both my ‘heads’ (lol). She’s pretty hot and is a decent enough actress who seems to have some untapped potential brewing beneath the surface, but ignoring that, her role in
Ray Donovan was essentially an audition for the role and quite frankly, I think she’d nail it.
Robin Shou as Yamato Take/Stick I might get some flak here as admittedly, Shou isn’t the greatest actor around. Nonetheless, I stand behind this decision as whilst his acting abilities are little more than serviceable he definitely can bring that ‘wise old master’ presence and manage it well with a role like this. I mean he’s pretty badass but he’s also pretty unfairly overlooked, I mean he was probably one if not the only good thing about
Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li so I’d definitely be interested in seeing what he could do.
Lee Tergesen as Ben Urich Tergesen is a pretty underrated actor; I've seen him in a few things now and it's pretty clear he can strike a fine balance between comedy and drama. Despite that though, he has a very natural kind of intelligent, world-weary and humble/reserved kind of attitude that he tends to bring to his characters and personally speaking, to me, this seems very suitable for this role so I'd love to see what he could do here, especially given his work in
Oz and
Generation Kill.
Devon Sawa as Danny Rand/Iron Fist Sawa as Iron Fist is another role I imagine I’ll get some flak for, but hell for me it works. Whilst he’s known by most audiences as the scrawny chump from
Final Destination, Sawa reinvented himself with his work in
Nikita. There he effectively showcased his talents with drama, wit, martial arts and just general badassery. He’s a talented individual so I’d like to think Sawa could shine a spot light on the role and just boost the character’s popularity.
Billy Brown as Luke Cage/Power Man Brown is a solid actor who unfortunately doesn’t get as much spotlight as he deserves and is often referred to as ‘the black guy that always dies’. Whilst slightly unknown, Brown has definitely proven he’s got the credentials for the job to me; he can play commanding and cool like a boss, badass and knows how to balance his characters well not making them too serious or light. His work in
Lights Out,
Dexter and
The Following is a clear reflection of his talents and I feel if given the chance he could really make Luke Cage a very cool and badass hero for all audiences.
Michaela McManus as Jessica Jones I’ve seen McManus in a few things now and I think it’s fair to say she’s an up and coming actress who’s good at proving her mettle. Her work in
Law and Order: SVU and
Awake showcase her potential and whilst not a proper indicator of her full abilities it convinced me she’d be a good fit for the role. I mean end of the day, she’s hot and talented; what more is really needed?
Olivia Wilde as Linda Carter/the Night Nurse Wilde is a pretty talented actress and whilst I a role like this might not be too big a CBM related role for her, to me it fits. She’s hot, talented and versatile and genuinely comes off as being pretty smart, has worked well with Hunnam in the past and had a similar kind of role in
House. So, I think it’s safe to say she more than qualifies to play the nurse to Marvel’s street heroes.
Karl Urban as Frank Castle/the Punisher Ever since
Dredd I’ve heard Urban’s name thrown around for Batman, and whilst it could work I personally don’t think he’d be able to portray the character very well (in particular Bruce Wayne). However, given that Dredd is a pretty similar character to Frank Castle, I think Urban would excel in this role. He’s versatile and pretty badass and with his roles in the aforementioned
Dredd and
The Bourne Supremacy I think he’d really shine in the role.
Ray Wise as Roscoe Sweeney/the Fixer Shout out goes to
MrMurdock for this one!
Wise is put simply very perfect for this role. His work in
Robocop and
Reaper have proved he’s great at playing sleazy bad guys, with the latter of the two also a clear indicator of his ability at playing a charming, manipulative and suave asshole with an authoritative presence with ease. End of the day, Wise was made for this role, and not casting him here would be a sin, so I’d love to see him in the part.
Ray Stevenson as Wilson Fisk/the Kingpin Stevenson is a badass actor. A giant of man who genuinely comes off as an individual who could break you mentally as well as physically. He’s got the presence, the voice, the look (kind of; just shave his head and all) and a certain coldness to him that I think would really help him make the character his own. If cast I imagine his take on the Kingpin to be like a cross between Isaak Sirko (his character from
Dexter), Gus Fring (of
Breaking Bad) and Michael Corleone (of
The Godfather trilogy); in other words an epic adversary for Daredevil to face.
Anyway, just thought I’d mention; I really liked the idea of the Kingpin being the guy who killed Daredevil’s dad on behalf of the Fixer in the first film so ideally would love for that idea to stick. It just personalises their history much more and would allow for some great drama between the two.
Tom Burke as Lester Poindexter/Bullseye Burke’s a relative unknown actor but definitely has a lot of potential. I can see myself getting some flak for this role too, but [frick] it, I think it works. Burke has a knack at playing sleazy and despicable characters well but he also brings a certain roguish charm to his characters plus with his weird scar-lip he just has a classic shady look going for him. Whilst this might not be exactly what all of you see in the character I really think he’d own it and think he’d be able to make Bullseye a villain we love to hate and just really surprise audiences with the role; his work in
Donkey Punch and small role in
Only God Forgives in particular convinced me he’d work the role well.
Alexa Davalos as Elektra Natchios I’ll admit I haven’t seen Davalos in much outside of
The Chronicles of Riddick and
Clash of the Titans but I definitely think she has what it takes to do the role justice. Admittedly, neither of the aforementioned films are great indicators of her talent, but she did well with what little screen time she had in both films, bringing a certain presence to both her characters. Like with Hunnam I think she can bring a good balance of grit and sensitivity and I think she just naturally comes off as classy and appropriate for the role, so, personally speaking, I’d really be interested in seeing what exactly Davalos could do in the role. Plus, for any naysayers out there, she’s actually Greek so would definitely be an appropriate choice for the role.
Natalie Martinez as Maya Lopez/Echo I mainly know Martinez from her work in
Death Race and
Detroit 1-8-7, again not really too great indicator of her talents but good enough to prove she has got some talent and potential to grow. Nonetheless, in a role like this I really think she could shine, I mean she meets most of the criteria; hot, capable with drama and light material and reasonably capable with action. So, again, I’d be willing to see what she could do.
Christopher Meloni as Joseph Antonia/Hammerhead Meloni is another very badass actor I’ve cast. He’s talented and versatile, pretty imposing, can handle dark material and has got a definite authoritative presence to himself which just works with the role. Need any further justification? Just look at his work in
Oz,
Law and Order: SVU and
True Blood to see.
Eamonn Walker as Lonnie Lincoln/Tombstone Once again another badass actor I’ve cast. Yes, I realise I’m using the word ‘badass’ in this fan cast a lot, but it’s the best word I can think of to describe these actors. Anyway, like Meloni Walker too is quite talented and versatile and also brings a similar kind of presence to his roles, so in a role like this I think he’d do nothing but shine. His work in
Oz and
Blood and Bone in particular really just convinced me he’d be great in the role.
Mark Dacascos as Martin Li/Mr Negative Dacascos is a pretty solid martial artist and actor. He can play baddies with ease and definitely brings a certain class to his roles. Put simply, if cast I think he’d just make a really cool villain and a great addition to the mobsters of Daredevil’s world. His work in
Cradle 2 the Grave and
Hawaii Five-0 in particular just sold me for him in the role.
Anyway, I get that the character is primarily a Spider-Man villain, but quite frankly I think he fits Daredevil’s world better given Daredevil has more of a connection to Asian villains via the Hand and all. So, ideally if the character is ever introduced through any films I’d like him to show up as Daredevil foe.
Kim Coates as Leland Owlsley/the Owl I’ve seen Coates in a few things now, but ultimately I cast him because of his work in
Sons of Anarchy. Coates can definitely play sleazy and shady with ease and I can really see him working this role well and think he’d be capable of bringing a spotlight to a lesser known villain.
Peter Greene as Zebediah Killgrave/the Purple Man Greene first caught my attention with his work in
The Mask and later
Pulp Fiction. Whilst I haven’t seen him in anything else, both films showed off his talents well; he can play sleazy, intimidating and slightly creepy assholes with ease and when it gets down to basics, that is ultimately what this character is.
Jon Bernthal as Billy ‘the Beaut’ Russo/Jigsaw Bernthal got my attention with his work in
The Walking Dead. Whilst I haven’t seen him in anything else, I’ve definitely become a big fan of his. He’s a very talented actor and great at playing badass psychos so I’d love to see him take on this character as I think just be really great and memorable in the role.
Keira Knightley as Mary Walker/Typhoid Mary Knightley might seem like a bit of a strange choice for this role, but I cast mainly due to her work in the underrated
Domino. There she played a feisty little badass really well. Whilst she’s somewhat strayed away from roles like this I still think if cast here she’d be great as she tends to be one of those actresses that can really surprise given the right role.
Joaquin Phoenix as Larry Cranston/Mr Fear Phoenix is really great and underrated actor. Just when you think he gives you his best, he goes and on ups himself. Just a really talented guy who can bring a lot of depth and presence to his roles. In a role like this, I think he’d really do wonders and definitely be able to bring some light to a lesser known villain. His work in
Gladiator and
The Master in particular made me think he’d able to great job in the role.
James Ransone as Jonathon Ohnn/the Spot Ransone is another underrated actor I’ve cast, who I think could bring some definite charm and attention to this rather unknown villain. His work in
Generation Kill,
Inside Man and
Treme in particular made me think he’d be able to bring a multifaceted and deeper performance to role and really just help the character become more of a breakout character as opposed to a guilty pleasure.
Matt Gerald as Melvin Potter/Gladiator Haven’t seen Gerald in much but his role in last season of
Dexter really caught my attention. I mean he’s clearly a pretty big and imposing guy but his role there was essentially an audition for this role as there he basically played a weird, gladiator-style, ear ring fetish serial killer pretty well. So, if given the chance I think he’d make for an interesting bad guy for Daredevil to go toe to toe with.
Sean Patrick Flannery, Walton Goggins and Amaury Nolasco as ‘Fancy Dan’ Rubinstein, ‘Montana’ Bale and Bruno ‘the Ox’ Sanchez (The Enforcers) Flannery is pretty badass actor who I think would be great in leading this trio. He sold me for this role with his work in
The Boondocks Saints films. Goggins is a solid veteran actor who’s played similar eccentric bad guy type roles in the past, but his work in
Justified,
Predators and
Django Unchained in particular made me think he’d be a great addition here. As for Nolasco, well his work in
Prison Break and
Armoured speaks for itself. Whilst he might not be as big as his comic book counterpart I still think he’d be able to do a solid job in the role and also just work well with Flannery and Goggins as the third member of the Enforcers.
___________________________ So, that’s my ideal cast for Daredevil. I hope you enjoyed checking it out, and if you did look out for my Spider-Man cast!