Casting News/Rumors Galore!

Take a moment to get away from your 24 hr. Deflategate coverage to check out all the castings + rumors that happened yesterday in the comic movie/TV realm. Seriously was yesterday was like Christmas for comic junkies. So let's take a look at what went down in no particular order.

1. CBS casts Melissa Benoist (Whiplash) as Supergirl
Source: ComicBookMovie

Like/Love/Hate/Don't Care: Last time I had doubts about a Glee actor becoming a superhero, Grant Gustin made me look like a fool. The guy is a fantastic Flash. So with the same casting company from Arrow and Flash, David Rappaport, and people behind the scenes such as Greg Bertani from those shows onboard, I have confidence in Melissa Benoist being an awesome version of Kara Zor-El. I liked Melissa in Whiplash and I like this casting.

2. Rumor: Gary Sinise (CSI:NY) will play Gen. Eiling in Suicide Squad

Source: ComicBookMovie

Like/Love/Hate/Don't Care: Gary Sinise would be a solid grab for WB/DC, but I don't think the role of Gen. Wade Eiling merits much hype. He will probably serve a similar purpose to what Christopher Meloni's General did in Man Of Steel which will amount to minimal screen time. So I like Sinise yet don't really give a shit whether or not he ends up being Eiling.

3. Jon Bernthal (Fury) or Joel Edgerton (Warrior) for Rick Flagg?
Source: CimenaBlend

Who You Taking?: Shane "Worst Best Friend Ever" Walsh is getting the nod here. Personally I'm not a huge fan of Edgerton, he really sucked in Exodus: Gods Among Us. So if it comes down to these two, I would rather see the superior actor, Bernthal, lead the Suicide Squad as Rick Flagg Jr.

4. Rumor: Joe Manganiello (True Blood) will be Deathstroke

Source: ComicBookMovie

Like/Love/Hate/Don't Care: Love isn't a strong enough word for how I feel about this rumor. I'm a HUGE Joe Manganiello fan. The guy loves comics and has one of the best beards in the business, nuff said. So if Joe steps into the greatest assassin in the DC universe's shoes, it would be a dream come true.

5. Karl Urban (Dredd) Wanted For a Role in Aquaman

Source: ComicBookMovie

Who Should He Play?: First off, Karl Urban is a beast. That is a fact. Anyone who has seen Dredd will concur with this. So who better to step into the shoes' of Aquaman dickhead half brother/ nemesis Ocean Master? He could be plotting in secret in the first solo film. Then unleash chaos for Arthur in the sequel.

6. Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave) Eyed For a Role in Doctor Strange

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Who Should He Play?: Chiwetel would have made an excellent Black Panther, but Marvel decided to go with Chadwick Boseman instead. With a chance to still be in the MCU, I see him potentially being the Ancient One. The mentor to Doctor Strange.

7. Younger Jean Grey, Cyclops, And Storm Casted For X-Men: Apocalypse

Source: ComicBookMovie

Like/Love/Hate/Don't Care: I mean I do like Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark on Game of Thrones, but the best actors of this franchise are already place, so I'm saying I don't care. Cyclops, Storm, and Jean are all great characters, but Singer has never given them their due and I don't see it happening for their younger counterparts either.

Bonus: Who Should Direct Aquaman? Nichols (MUD) or Murro (300: Rise Of An Empire)? No question, Nichols. He is an original film maker and not a Zack Snyder ripoff like Murro. I want different styles of filmmaking across the DCU, especially for displaying Atlantis.

Thanks for reading and make sure to follow us on twitter @Caped_Informers or follow me @cstrand73 for all your comic related news.

Exploring The DC Cinematic Universe: Aquaman

Aquaman

Release Date: July 17th, 2018

Who is Aquaman?: Arthur Curry was born on the surface world and later became King of Atlantis. Half-human and half-Atlantean, he struggles to choose between his two homelands. His powers are often misunderstood by the general public making them think of him as a joke, but in reality Arthur is anything but. 

Director: Matt Reeves (Dawn Of the Planet of the Apes)

Why?: Atlantis needs to be fully realized. It should be beautiful. In his last film, Matt Reeves created a beautiful world for his ape characters to live in. I think he can do the same for the Atlanteans. He has extensive work with special effects and knows how to tell a good story while maintaining character development. I mean his lead character in Dawn was an ape (Ceasar) who only spoke a few words at a time, but you entirely sympathize and understood Ceasar's character because of the way Reeves told the story. He is a craftsman and DC should have him onboard for at least one of their films.

Proposed Story: Arthur Curry must choose between living on the surface world or return to Atlantis and rule as their king. He is greatly distressed by the harsh treatment given to the oceans during his time as ruler of Atlantis (World Engine in Indian Ocean?), and he deciding whether to give up the Atlantean throne or return to full-time heroics. However, he now struggles with his lack of reputation with the greater public on land, which views him as a lesser superhero with less impressive powers than those of his peers like Superman. Meanwhile Aquaman's arch nemesis Black Manta breaks open a deep trench on the ocean floor releasing a horde of fish monsters called "The Trench". Aquaman must stop "The Trench" from destroying the surface world before he loses his birth home. All while Manta and his crew infiltrate Atlantis in hopes to destroy the other home of his hated enemy.

Inspired By: Once again a Geoff Johns storyline should inspire another DCCU film. This time John's The Trench written back in 2011 is the main influence on the overall story and treatment of the main characters.

Lead Characters (Cast): 

1. Aquaman/ Arthur Curry (Jason Mamoa)

Why?: Arthur should be a man torn between two worlds. Now with the casting of Jason Mamoa, I'm scared that his personality will be "Conan under water" like on Justice League: The Animated Series. That Aquaman was a badass, but not as compelling or interesting as the Arthur from comics. I want that Arthur. I also want to see people make fun of Aquaman's powers right to his face and then have Jason Mamoa shut them all up by displaying badassery.

2. Mera (Eva Green)

Why?: Mera may be Aquaman's girlfriend (or wife depending on continuity), but she is a strong independent woman in her own right. With her power to control water and her fiery attitude she can more than take care of herself. I picked Eva Green (Penny Dreadful) because she is a chameleon of an actress and is known for playing strong female roles.

Villains (Cast)

1. Black Manta (Will Smith)

Why?: I casted Smith in my recent Suicide Squad write-up (click link at bottom of article to read), so I decided to keep continuity and have him remain as Manta. He is the big bad and his vendetta against Arthur can be revealed throughout the movie. (There are many versions for why he hates Aquaman. Pick any one)

I want Manta's raid to be like his one on the Young Justice episode "Downtime". Replace Kaldur with Arthur though of course.

2. Orm/Ocean Master (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau)

Why?: Aquaman's half-brother and the man who told Black Manta about the trench. Orm is seen as a good brother throughout the movie until the end when it is revealed to the audience that he helped plan the attack on Atlantis in order to show Arthur as an incompetent leader. Leading Arthur to be removed from the throne, so that Orm can take his place. I chose Jamie Lannister as Orm because he can play both good (Jamie seasons 3-4) and bad (Jamie Season 1-2) sides of characters.

3. The Trench (CGI)

Why?: The Trench don't speak English, but often yell in their own language (Mostly about food). They will all be CGI and any voice actor can speak their fairy tale language.

The 12 days of Editorials continues tomorrow with a write-up on Batman! Be sure to check back here then to see it for yourself! And read our first 3 articles on the DCCU by clicking the links below.

• Suicide Squad
• Wonder Woman
• Justice League
• The Flash

It took all my strength not to include Aqualad (Kaldur'am) and Topo in this movie because I love those characters. Perhaps they could be seen in a sequel. By the way if you haven't seen Geoff John's revamp of Topo, here it is in all it's glory.

Krakken Status