Frank Grillo, known for his role as the villainous Crossbones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has officially confirmed that he will be joining the DC Universe. The actor spoke with ComicBook.com while doing the press rounds for One Day as a Lion and expressed his disappointment with how his MCU character was handled as a reason for signing on with James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Studios.
“They never told a story [about Crossbones]. The mythology of the MCU and just what Marvel has in its pool of characters, it’s so deep. Crossbones was there for a minute, but he was supposed to be there longer, then they went the direction they did,” Grillo stated. “I think Crossbones serves a purpose, but I think the interesting thing is that if you see how many people around the world have responded to Crossbones, and again, he’s on the screen for a very f–king short amount of time, I think there’s more there. I think there was more meat on the bone. I was disappointed, which is why I went over to DC.”
Has Frank Grillo joined DC’s Creature Commandos?
The DC Universe casting rumors involving Frank Grillo were fueled by his attendance at the red carpet premiere of Shazam! Fury of the Gods, alongside fellow actor Ron Perlman. Speculation arose that the two actors were cast as members of DC’s Creature Commandos, a group of supernatural soldiers.
Frank Grillo’s move from the Marvel Cinematic Universe to the DC Universe is not unprecedented, as several actors have made the switch between the two comic book movie franchises. One of the most notable examples is J.K. Simmons, who portrayed J. Jonah Jameson in the original Spider-Man trilogy before going on to play Commissioner Gordon in Justice League.
As for Frank Grillo, fans of the actor will undoubtedly be excited to see him in a new comic book movie role. While his time as Crossbones may have been short-lived, his performance was memorable, and there is no doubt that he will bring that same level of intensity to his new DC Universe character, whose identity is being kept under wraps for now.
The Creature Commandos were created by J. M. DeMatteis and Pat Broderic, with the team making its first appearance in the pages of 1980’s Weird War Tales #93. Their leader General Matthew Shrieve made an appearance in the third season of The CW’s Arrow, with Marc Singer bringing the character to life.
The future of the DC Universe
James Gunn and Peter Safran told journalists that their vision for the DC Universe includes locked scripts, wiggle room and a unified storyline across film, teleivsion, animation and video game projects. The two explained that the DC Universe could bring back elements from previous DC regimes, meaning that their eight-to-year plan is not a full reboot.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom are currently in various stages of post-production at Warner Bros. Discovery, with all four DC Universe movies slated to hit theaters in 2023. Will the characters from those movies make appearances in the new DCU? Only Gunn and Safran know.
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