Though it doesn't happen too often, fan-favorite picks for certain characters do sometimes end up landing the roles. Most recently, Skyler Gisondo, who has been fan-cast as Jimmy Olsen ever since he appeared in The Righteous Gemstones, joined Superman: Legacy's ensemble as Clarke Kent's Daily Planet colleague.
With this is mind, it's fair to wonder how much attention studios and filmmakers pay to online casting suggestions, and whether they have ever resulted in an actor securing a major comic book movie role.
James Gunn was asked this very question on a recent Instagram post, and gave the following response.
“When I’m casting a role, I will sometimes see who fans have suggested online for folks I or my casting directors haven’t considered. Sometimes they have good ideas, sometimes terrible ones. I don’t remember it actually leading to someone being cast, however.”
This type of thing will obviously vary from director to director, and we'd say it's highly unlikely that no filmmaker has ever cast an actor as a particular character after first being made aware of them online.
On the same post, Gunn was asked for an update on the second season of Peacemaker, and confirmed that he's still writing the show... while also working on the DCU Superman reboot.
“Superman: Legacy is the true foundation of our creative vision for the DC Universe. Not only is Superman an iconic part of DC lore, he is also a favorite character for comic book readers, viewers of earlier movies, and fans around the world," said Gunn during the DCU slate announcement. "I can’t wait to introduce our version of Superman who audiences will be able to follow and get to know across films, movies, animation and gaming.”
Specific plot details are still under wraps, but Brainiac is rumored to be the movie's primary antagonist. Gunn recently debunked another report which claimed that the story would revolve around some kind of conflict in the fictional Middle Eastern country of Bialya, which is where the Scarab in Blue Beetle originates from in the comics.
It was said that the Man of Steel would be blamed for a terrorist organization getting their hands on powerful Kryptonian tech, and The Authority would be sent in to investigate. Gunn simply stated that the terrorist threat aspect "isn't true," so there's always a chance some of the other details are accurate.
Production is scheduled to get underway early next year.