As previously said, I'm a fan of both DC and Marvel, though lean slightly more to DC given my preference for the World's Finest. Regardless, whilst I'm pretty happy with the output we're getting in terms of both companies' films, I'll admit every now and then they've cast a role that just hasn't sat well with me.
Long story short, for this cast I've decided to cast a potential director as well as (most of) the primary heroes and villains of the Green Lantern mythos, and essentially, who I'd like to appear in the cinematic universe, but for the sake of originality I've gone with completely different choices than the actors/actresses that have been cast already despite however much I like/dislike them. Also, granted for this particular series, there is a ridiculously large amount of characters, I’ve opted to focus on specific handful that I’m quite fond of as opposed to the every single Lantern.
Anyway, enjoy and leave a comment/thumbs up below!
Joseph Kosinski | The Director
Notable Credits: Tron: Legacy, Oblivion
I’ve admittedly not seen much of Kosinski’s work, and his filmography is admittedly limited but something that is apparent from what I have seen is that he knows how to beautifully create and capture the worlds’ of his films. Whilst it can be said/somewhat criticised that he may not be too great a fit as his films have often received mixed reception, I personally think he’d be an ideal choice, not only as I’ve enjoyed all his films but also because as seen in the underrated
Tron: Legacy, he could bring the right kind of visual aesthetic and tone to this series, and that more than qualifies him in my book.
The Good:
Taylor Kitsch | Hal Jordan aka Green Lantern
Notable Credits: Battleship, John Carter, Savages, Lone Survivor, True Detective
Kitsch hasn't had much luck when it’s come to headlining a film, but he is admittedly my only choice for the role. Despite his lack of success in starring roles, Kitsch has proven he's a talented actor and has a very rogue, Hal Jordan-esque charm to him, but as seen from his more recent roles he’s also proven a clear capability in handling darker and more serious material pretty well too. So, as Hal Jordan? I think Kitsch could bring the right kind of levity to the role and a solid balance of charm and grit, and give us a more definitive take on the iconic ring-slinger.
Abigail Spencer | Carol Ferris aka Star Sapphire
Notable Credits: Mad Men, Suits, True Detective
Spencer might seem like a bit of a random choice especially when considering her (lack) of interaction with Kitsch in
True Detective, but truthfully, it was due to her work in
Suits and her strong resemblance to the character that made me think she’d be an ideal choice for the role. She’s clearly more than just a pretty face and most definitely can do drama, comedy and the right amount of sass; essentially, she’d be able to bring real life to the role as opposed to her wooden predecessor.
John Hurt | Ganthet
Notable Credits: Alien,
the Hellboy Series,
V for Vendetta,
Snowpiercer
What can be said? Hurt is quite literally nothing short of a legendary and iconic actor. He’s great in wise, sage-like roles such as this and can definitely strike the right balance of warm and fatherly and cold and ruthless; frankly, he’d be perfect.
Richard T Jones | Kilowog
Notable Credits: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,
Hawaii Five-0,
Godzilla
Jones is a bit of an unknown character actor, but I’ve cast him here due to his knack in playing imposing military and authoritative characters. He’s a talented and reliable actor and personally someone I feel could service the role very well.
Hugh Laurie | Salaak
Notable Credits: House, Street Kings
Laurie to me is perfect for a role like this, primarily given his work in the above listed films. Whilst this casting choice is somewhat unlikely given Laurie’s skills, if cast I think he could really make the role memorable and transcend the CGI restraints that would hold other actor’s back.
Omari Hardwick | John Stewart aka Green Lantern (2)
Notable Credits: Dark Blue, Power
Hardwick is a popular choice for the role, and given what I’ve seen of him it’s clear he’s a talented and pretty overlooked actor. Whilst I don’t see him winning any accolades any time soon, he’s definitely a very dependable actor and someone I would feel at ease with in this role.
Devon Sawa | Guy Gardner aka Green Lantern (3)
Notable Credits: Final Destination,
Nikita
Sawa is pretty capable actor with a penchant for physicality. My awareness of his talents is somewhat limited, but he has previously played a similar character well, so I think it’d be safe in assuming he could do well again.
Olivia Thirlby | Arisia Rrab
Notable Credits: Dredd, The Darkest Hour
I mainly cast Thirlby here due to her work in
Dredd, but it’s clear she’s a pretty solid actress who deserves more work. Whilst I haven’t seen her in too much, she’s proven her action and drama talents and I’d love to see them put to more use.
Shiloh Fernandez | Kyle Rayner aka the White Lantern
Notable Credits: Jericho,
Evil Dead
Admittedly, my viewing of Fernandez is somewhat limited, and I did actually spot a picture of him as Kyle Rayner on Google, but to me, it is one casting choice that fits, superficially at least. Ultimately, Fernandez is a talented young actor who does come off as soulful, so I would be willing to see what he could do in the role.
Genesis Rodriguez | Soranik Natu
Notable Credits: Man on a Ledge, Tusk
Rodriguez has stuck with me since her very hot and memorable turn in
Man on a Ledge- I’m not quite sure what it was but since then I’ve wanted her in a role like this, and would just genuinely love to see it materialise.
Daniel Dae Kim | Saint Walker
Notable Credits: Lost,
Hawaii Five-0
Some might consider this to be somewhat of a ‘unique’ casting choice, but given his serviceable work in
Hawaii Five-0, I thought Kim would be perfect here as it’d allow him to basically play the ‘same’ role albeit on a large scale. He’s ultimately a solid actor and someone who seems to have a genuine passion for his roles, no matter how small, so I genuinely do think he’d be a nice addition to add along.
Sofia Boutella | Iroque
Notable Credits: Kingsman: The Secret Service
I’ve not seen Boutella in much admittedly, but her work in
Kingsman was very memorable. She’s clearly a talented actress and certain very capable physically, but that added with her exotic features just makes me want to see her take on the role, and frankly, from what I’ve seen, she’d do nothing but benefit any comic book movie.
Riz Ahmed | Simon Baz aka Green Lantern (4)
Notable Credits: The Road to Guantanamo, Shifty, Four Lions, Ill Manors, Nightcrawler
To the uninitiated, granted this character is a New 52 creation, it’s worth note Simon Baz is the most recent addition to the Green Lantern Corps; a wrongly convicted terrorist, who was subjected to bigotry and fell into a life of crime, only to be given a chance to repent for his past by defending the universe.
Ahmed is a very versatile British gem of an actor. Fortunately, he’s got a strong resemblance to the character and even shares the same faith, but despite all that he’s very capable with drama, comedy and even action and could bring a certain level of grit and genuineness to the role, and personally, in my eyes just do something impressive.
The Bad:
Giancarlo Esposito | Thaal Sinestro
Notable Credits: Breaking Bad, Revolution
Whilst my viewing experience of Esposito is fairly limited, what little I’ve seen him in has been brilliant in terms of determining his appropriateness for this role. The fact that he strongly resembles Dough Mahnke’s incarnation of the character also just benefits the idea of him of in the role, and further just makes me want to see it that much more.
Rory McCann | Atrocitus
Notable Credits: Hot Fuzz, Game of Thrones
Very simply put, the Hound as Atrocitus is something that sounds very fitting to me. McCann is a really cool actor and imposing as hell too, the fact that he’s shown a clear knack for playing tough and intimidating character with deeper depth to them shows how qualified he is for this role, and really just makes me want to see him take it on.
Garret Dillahunt | Clifford Zmeck aka Major Force
Notable Credits: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, The Road, Burn Notice, Raising Hope, Justified
Dillahunt is a pretty versatile and underrated character actor; he works best playing brawny idiots and creepy/cold antagonists, so is most definitely appropriate for a role like this. The fact that he’s already pretty imposing physically and has the right kind of subverted ‘square jaw’ look helps too, as with him at the helm, I think he’d really just deliver as a very badass and despicable villain.
Benedict Wong | John Yamazake aka Doctor Polaris
Notable Credits: Redemption, Top Boy, Marco Polo
To the uninitiated, granted this character is a New 52 creation and admittedly not necessarily a full-on Green Lantern villain, it’s worth note, the character is ultimately someone who gains his abilities and utilises his them out of spite due to a grief-born hatred he has for superhumans, particularly the Justice League.
Wong is a pretty cool actor, admittedly he’s a little on the big side for a role like this but, he’s proven a real knack for playing villains and just generally, shady characters. In a role like this, I think he’d just be very memorable, and bring a nice kind of wise/subtle cerebral brutality to it too.
Tom Hardy | Lobo
Notable Credits: Bronson,
RocknRolla,
Inception,
Warrior,
The Dark Knight Rises,
Mad Max: Fury Road
Hardy is a very versatile talent who would undoubtedly shine in this role. Whilst there has been some controversy regarding this character, I still think Hardy would absolutely shine and just deliver a very badass, very cool and very memorable DC villain again.
Stephen Lang | Mongul
Notable Credits: Avatar,
Conan,
Terra Nova
Lang is a very great character actor who excels in authoritative roles like this. This is admittedly straight forward type casting, but it works, very well, and is definitely a casting choice I’d like to see amount.
Micahel Irby | Abel Tarrant aka the Tattooed Man
Notable Credits: The Unit,
Fast Five,
The Following, True Detective
I’ve seen Irby in a bunch of things over the years, but since his brief role in
The Following I can’t help but think he’d be able to do something very interesting in a role like this. I mean, he’s clearly proven himself to be a capable performer, but with his work there he’s really shown off his versatility well, and it definitely shows that he deserves more attention.
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson | Mark Richards aka the Tattooed Man (2)
Notable Credits: The A-Team
Admittedly, in terms of acting capabilities Jackson is a step down when compared to Irby, but with this particular iteration of the character it’s been made pretty clear that he is little more than muscle. Whilst in terms of villains, that isn’t really anything too deep to the character other than that, with someone like Jackson at the helm it’s obvious he’d deliver the right kind of physicality and presence needed.
Dominic Monaghan | Larfleeze
Notable Credits: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Lost, Flashforward
Monaghan is a pretty cool and entertaining actor, whilst he may not typically be associated with a role like this, it’s due to his work in
Lost and
Flashforward particularly which made me think he’d do great here. Ignoring his credentials however, if we’re being honest, his size also pretty much qualifies him well too, either way, I think he’d just be very entertaining in this gluttonous role.
John Hannah | Krona
Notable Credits: The Mummy Trilogy,
Spartacus,
A Touch of Cloth
Hannah is a very versatile actor, and someone who has proven a really great tendency at playing cerebral villains very well. Given his brilliant work in Starz
Spartacus series I genuinely think he is not only a brilliant choice for this role, but the only choice, and feel with him at the helm, he’d just really do brilliantly.
Ralph Fiennes | Volthoom aka the First Lantern
Notable Credits: Schindler’s List,
Red Dragon,
The Harry Potter Series,
In Bruges,
Clash of the Titans
To the uninitiated, granted this character is a New 52 creation, it’s worth note Volthoom was the Guardian's first lantern (as the name indicates), but due to being overwhelmed by the emotional spectrum, he went crazy (and murderous) believing himself to be a god, leading to him being locked up and hidden away for eons.
Fiennes is a really great actor and definitely a treat to watch when it comes to playing villains but more so than anything else, I cast him due to his brilliant turn as Voldemort and Frances Dolarhyde. Personally, those two roles in particular just really struck a chord with me in terms what I think he could bring to this role, and just makes me think he’d deliver a very great performance as this villain.
Charles Dance | Relic
Notable Credits: Last Action Hero, Ali G in Da House, Dracula Untold, Game of Thrones
To the uninitiated, granted this character is a New 52 creation, it’s worth note Relic is the last survivor of a long-dead universe, that died due to a drain of the emotional spectrum; resultantly, he takes an issue with all ring-bearers given their rings also drain energy from the emotional spectrum of the DC universe too.
Dance is a really great villainous actor, and someone who can do smart, cold, cruel, calculating and regal with ease. Casting him in this role would not only elevate the character but allow him to donate his skills and class to a series that most would argue, requires some more legitimacy.
Jonathan Tucker | William Hand aka Black Hand
Notable Credits: The Black Donnellys, Hannibal, Justified, Kingdom
Tucker is a pretty unknown actor, and I admittedly have only seen him briefly in a fairly limited capacity, but it was due to his short and brilliant role in
Hannibal and also his work in
Kingdom that lead to me casting him here. He can play cruel, creepy, intense and very dark/damaged characters very well, and as seen through
Hannibal, previously has played a ‘death worshipper’, very, very well before.
Michael C Hall | Jim Corrigan aka the Spectre
Notable Credits: Dexter,
Gamer
Hall is a brilliant and versatile actor who is well known for his capabilities with dark characters; frankly, given his past experience at playing another 'spirit of vengeance', I think it's a safe bet in saying he'd be an ideal candidate for this role.
Bill Nighy | Nekron
Notable Credits: The Underworld Series,
The Pirates of the Caribbean Series
With his role in the
Underworld series, Nighy really stressed how great he is at playing dark and regal villains. Frankly, his work there was nothing short of an audition for a role like this, and given his talents, I think he would be nothing but a benefit to the DCCU, so I also would love to see him take on this role if not another.
So, with that done, please leave a comment/thumbs up below!