Hey all,
A bit late with that, but I've finally gotten around to posting the final installment of my big DC Cinematic Universe fancast. I've previously posted my casting choices for the Justice League, the Teen Titans, and various supporting characters from DC Comics. Now, I'll be covering none other than some of most famous supervillains from the DC Universe. Some of these characters have been featured on the big screen before, others haven't.
The Joker - Sharlto Copley (District 9, The A-Team)
After Heath Ledger's remarkable portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime in
The Dark Knight, it would be tough to find a replacement, as the character will inevitably return to the big screen in some form in the near future. I was tired of seeing Crispin Glover being cast as Joker in 90% of these fancasts, so I decided to find somebody else. After searching through many actors, I found my top choice in Sharlto Copley. You need a crazy actor to properly play Joker, and in
The A-Team, Copley showed that he can be pretty goofy/crazy. He's a pretty solid actor from what I've seen, and he would do a fine job depicting The Joker. As for when the character should be featured on film again, I'd rather not see him again until one of the sequels to the
Batman reboot, or perhaps a
Justice League movie which has the Legion Of Doom taking on the JLA.
Others I Conidered: James Franco, Adrien Brody, Bradley Cooper
Darkseid - Jeremy Irons (
The Lion King,
The Words)
Unsurprisingly, Darkseid is rumored to be the villain in Warner Bros.'
Justice League movie, which is reportedly eying a 2015 release. I'm perfectly happy with the idea, as Darkseid is a huge threat to the DC Universe and you need a huge threat to assemble the greatest superheroes around. As for who should play the ruler of Apokolips, Jeremy Irons has been my choice for some time. He has shown in
The Lion King that he can wonderfully portray a villain, even in voice form. He would be the perfect choice to play Darkseid. I'd rather see him play the character in motion-capture than merely voicing a CGI character, personally.
Others I Considered: None
Lex Luthor - Jon Hamm (
Mad Men,
The Day The Earth Stood Still)
Luthor may have been used in more
Superman films than any other villain, but I still feel like we have yet to see a real Luthor on the big screen. Something more like the DCAU/Clancy Brown version. After seeing his Funny Or Die video in which he plays Luthor, Jon Hamm instantly became my top choice to play the character. Hamm is a fan-favorite choice to play many comic book characters, especially Batman and Superman. However, I best see him portraying Lex Luthor on film. As for when Luthor should pop up again, perhaps he can be set up in
Man Of Steel and/or
Justice League. Having him lead a Legion Of Doom/Injustice League would be awesome.
Others I Considered: Billy Zane
Sinestro - Mark Strong (
Green Lantern,
Sherlock Holmes)
Strong previously played Sinestro in last year's
Green Lantern, which unfortunately bombed at the box office. However, it can't be the last time we see this version of Sinetro on the big screen, since Strong was incredible in the role. Since I'd like the
Green Lantern movie to exist in a
Justice League movie universe, Strong HAS to come back. Especially since
Green Lantern's after credits scene needs some explanation.
Others I Considered: Absolutely none
Brainiac - Eric Bana (Star Trek, Hulk)
Brainiac is one of my top DC villains who have to make a big screen debut soon, whether in a sequel to
Man Of Steel or
Justice League. To properly depict the character, you need an actor who can easily play a convincing villain. Enter Eric Bana. His performance as Nero in 2009's
Star Trek was so good, I couldn't recognize him as an actor who previously played Bruce Banner/Hulk. He would be a fantastic choice to bring Brainiac to the big screen.
Other I Considered: Jude Law, Ralph Fiennes
Deathstroke - Stephen Lang (Terra Nova, Avatar)
Lang is easily the fan favorite choice to play Slade Wilson on film, and it's not hard to see why. He has previously shown himself to be quite a badass after his roles in
Avatar and the severely underrated television series
Terra Nova, which is exactly what Deathstroke needs. The only problem is that, by the time that Deathstroke makes it to the big screen, Lang could be too old (he's currently 60 years old).
Others I Considered: None
Gorilla Grodd - Leonard Nimoy (
Star Trek,
Transformers: Dark Of The Moon)
Grodd is yet another villain who needs to make his big screen debut soon, and he would definitely be a different foe for a DC hero. Perhaps he can be in the planned
Flash movie? My initial choice to play Grodd was the frequently suggested Michael Clarke Duncan, who sadly passed away back in September (RIP man). After some consideration, I decided on none other than former Spock Leonard Nimoy. Nimoy is a great actor, and he recently showed that he can do a really good job playing a villain in the last
Tranformers movie. Give him some mo-cap, and he'd kill it as Grodd.
Others I Considered: Michael Clarke Duncan
Bane - Edgar Ramirez (
Wrath Of The Titans,
The Bourne Ultimatum Bane was recently featured on film in
The Dark Knight Rises, where he was brilliantly played by Tom Hardy. However, like The Joker, Bane is a popular Batman villain who will most likely be featured on the big screen yet again in the near future. Hopefully not until a
Batman or
Justice League sequel. Anyways, casting Bane isn't easy, and I finally decided on Edgar Ramirez after quite the search. You need to have a physically powerful actor to play Bane, and Ramirez showed in
Wrath Of The Titans that he can be really tough and that he can fight well. He'd be a pretty decent choice to play Bane.
Others I Considered: Javier Bardem
Solomon Grundy - Ron Perlman (
Hellboy,
Drive)
Grundy would be a fun villain to include in a film, and definitely a physically challenging one. Again, you need a tough actor to depict this character. Ron Perlman is a good actor, and is very familiar with the comic book movie world after playing Hellboy a couple of times. I think he'd be the best choice to play Solomon Grundy on film.
Others I Considered: None
Ares - Joel Edgerton (
Warrior,
The Thing)
Edgerton is in dire need of a comic book movie role, whether that of a villain or hero. He has shown in
Warrior that he's physically capable of such a role. He's currently one of the actors testing to play Star-Lord in Marvel's
Guardians Of The Galaxy, and has recently been suggested for roles such as Dr. Strange and Daredevil. However, he'd make a good Ares, who should be the main villain in Warner Bros.' planned
Wonder Woman movie. He's also the most commonly suggested actor for the role, which makes a whole lot of sense.
Others I Considered: Tom Hardy
Captain Cold - Jackie Earle Haley (
Lincoln,
Watchmen)
Cold would be a tricky villain to bring to the big screen, since he's quite similar to the more popular Mr. Freeze. I would love to see the character team up with other DC villains in the Legion Of Doom/Injustice League and/or be a villain in
The Flash. Jackie Earle Haley was my first choice to play Cold. Not only can he act the part well, but he arguably looks similar to the character, specifically the New 52 incarnation.
Others I Considered: None
Cheetah - Evan Rachel Wood (
The Conspirator,
The Ides Of March)
Wood is an actress who I'd love to see in a CBM someday. She was one of my choices to play Mary Jane Watson until Shailiene Woodley was cast in the role for the next
Spider-Man movie, and I would've chosen her as Aquaman's love interest Mera if she was older. However, I finally decided on a character who she'd be a great fit for: Cheetah, who I'd like to see in a
Wonder Woman film. Wood has the attitude that's needed for the antagonist.
Others I Considered: Rachel Nichols, Emily Blunt, Charlize Theron
Well, that's a wrap. Any suggestions/comments are more than welcome, just keep it civil. I plan on doing a new
Fantastic Four fancast soon, in honor of the reboot's recent release date announcement.