After months of lying dormant, the Dark Universe film aka Justice League Dark is back! In my extensive report last week on the future of the DCEU post-Suicide Squad, I noted that, among the unscheduled DCEU films, Dark Universe was the most uncertain. Guillermo del Toro developed the script for two years before departing, leaving the project without a creative voice. Megaproducer Scott Rudin came in to save the film in November last year and started to get the ball rolling on the film.
Now almost a year later, Dark Universe has a new director: Doug Liman, freshly departed from Fox’s ill-fated Gambit movie. With a director on board, the film can finally come together apace and that means casting. The team will consist of John Constantine, Zatanna, Etrigan the Demon, Deadman and Swamp Thing. As for possible villains and plot description, keep reading until the end. Caveat: I’m not an expert on the comics, so my suggestions are based on what I know about the film and may come out of left-field.
Without further ado, here’s are my casting picks for the Dark Universe roles. Click Next to start!
Det. John Constantine
The Star-Lord of the group (let’s be honest, Guardians of the Galaxy opened this door and paved the road for films like Suicide Squad and this). John Constantine is conspicuously named Det. John Constantine in Variety‘s report, leading BirthMoviesDeath‘s Devin Faraci to ask the Variety reporter who broke the story, Justin Kroll, for clarification. According to him, that was how his source described it and Faraci notes it sounds like they’re setting him up as the normie human face of the team a la Joel Kinnaman’s Col. Rick Flag in Squad. For my money, it sounds like a clueless studio misreading of the term “occult detective.” Constantine was previously played by Keanu Reeves in a 2005 film and Matt Ryan on a short-lived NBC series and briefly on The CW’s Arrow.
Colin Farrell was originally up for the role last November, when Rudin took over the project. That was our last update until today. Erik Davis of Movies.com suggested Liman’s good work relationship with Tom Cruise on Edge of Tomorrow and the upcoming American Made (they’re also developing Luna Park, a long-gestating project for Liman about a race to the moon) might put him in play for the role. While I know this one is unlikely and Cruise has his haters, if Will Smith can sell me on Deadshot, I would love to Cruise try on Constantine.
However, my choice for the role is Tom Hardy, who almost joined the DCEU as Rick Flag in Suicide Squad before The Revenant filming schedule forced him to drop out and be replaced by Kinnaman. The actor made the leap to blockbuster leading man with Mad Max: Fury Road and he’s indicated he’s disappointed he missed out on Squad, possibly making him open for Dark Universe.
Zatanna
Last November’s casting rumors didn’t yield any for Zatanna, who is expected to be the female lead of the film, except that they were seeking a black or Hispanic actress for the role, immediately calling to mind (you guessed it) Guardians of the Galaxy. Granted, Zoe Saldana is completely green in the role, but the comparison is valid from a casting perspective. Now, I love Saldana, but this would be her fourth major franchise – she already is the female lead of Star Trek, Avatar and Guardians. I’m not saying she couldn’t or shouldn’t. I’m just saying she probably won’t. Anyway, there are pesky non-complete clauses in contracts to think about.
Gugu Mbatha-Raw is a great actress ready for a big moment. I’d also love to see Michelle Rodriguez spread her wings once more outside the Fast & Furious films. And Naomie Harris, excellent as a badass Ms. Moneypenny in the recent Craig Bond films, would be a great choice as well.
But I personally favor Ruth Negga, who killed it on the first season of Preacher, somehow made the most of a thankless role in Warcraft and is due for awards attention this fall if Jeff Nichols’ Loving is as good as they say.
Etrigan the Demon
In the same Latino Review report that said Colin Farrell was up for Constantine said Ewan McGregor was wanted for Jason Blood aka Etrigan the Demon. In an interesting twist, the two actors were up for both parts and seeing which could fit, meaning Farrell was an option for Etrigan as well. I think McGregor is an amazing actor and I haven’t seen him blockbuster it up in a while (he saves The Island imho).
Another option is “American Tom Hardy” Logan Marshall-Green, who is so, so good in The Invitation (a brilliant film released this year, check it out on Netflix and go in completely cold. You’ll thank me). Tom Hiddleston could do the tortured soul as good as anyone, but he’s already Loki in Marvel. So who does that leave? Michael Fassbender, for my money. He’s dark and smoldering; what more do you need? Anything to get Fassbender and Hardy on screen together, I’m for.
Deadman
The LR report said the studio wanted a “comedic presence” for Deadman, a former trapeze artist who is killed and brought back to life to seek revenge on his killer. As with all comedic roles in the world, I want it to go to T.J. Miller, a genius on HBO’s Silicon Valley and pretty much everything he’s in (including Deadpool). In lieu of him, Seth Rogen is somebody I’d like to see in a big-budget blockbuster superhero like this. If Paul Rudd could pull it off in Ant-Man, I have confidence Rogen could too (he’s awesome in Steve Jobs), given the freedom as an actor unburdened from other roles (like he was on The Green Hornet). A lot of people will say neither actor is dark enough for the role, but these movies require levity and these guys are talented enough to be dark and hilarious.
If they’re going for tall and lanky, Joel McHale is a great performer who was able to act straight in Deliver Us from Evil. Vince Vaughn, too, has made a concerted effort to be taken serious lately, with a role on True Detective last year and one in the upcoming Hacksaw Ridge. Perhaps he could combine his dramatic and comedic talents here? This one is truly an unknown for me so I’m gonna slap a photo of Vaughn and be done with it. On to Swamp Thing!
Swamp Thing
And finally, Groot Swamp Thing, a giant plant being animated by the death of Alec Holland, a botanist who died in a chemical explosion in a swamp. Back when del Toro was working the project, his long-time collaborator and Hellboy himself Ron Perlman was the choice on the role and, according to reports, Perlman’s casting was one of the few areas of agreement between del Toro and WB prior to his departure and was still considered a good idea last November. Since I don’t know how involved this (undoubtedly) CGI role would be (here’s a previous screen test by a computer artist), it’s hard to cast but Perlman is genuinely great in everything from his beloved roles to his DTV trash. I’m fully on board.
As for the villains . . .
Now that Liman is aboard, I expect extensive, if not page one, rewrites on the project as he suits it to his creative aims. That’s no guarantee this film gets made of course. He did the same thing on Gambit and he left that in the same development hell he found it. What it means is that the story could change drastically from what has previously been reported/rumored. That plot, according to The Tracking Board, “involves a series of ancient tomes stolen by a madman hellbent on the destruction of humanity. When he learns of this, occult detective John Constantine seeks out a group of heroes that specialize in the mystic and arcane in order to save the world.”
I won’t speculate on actors for these villain roles (other than the ones rumored in the past) as I’m not sure what form the film or story will take when it ends up on screen or whether they will be involved in it at all. That said, the villain of Dark Universe is rumored to be . . .
. . . (SPOILER) . . .
. . . Anton Arcane
That madman referred to in the plot synopsis, Anton Arcane is a quintessential mad scientist and traditionally a Swamp Thing villain. Plus, the film was to have added Madame Xanadu to the mix. Villainous actor of the moment Ben Mendelsohn (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) was sought for Arcane while Monica Bellucci was bandied about for Xanadu (this was around the time of Spectre‘s release). Will Liman come back around to these performers? If the characters remain in the script, he’d be wise to.
Whew, that’s all I got. Thanks for reading guys, as you can tell, I’m super-psyched for this movie. Who do you guys envision in the title roles? Who will be the villain? Sound off in the comments!
