Grizzly’s Casting Couch: ‘Justice League’

Man of Steel has proven itself to be a commercial success, if not entirely a critical one. But to the eyes of the studios it did exactly what it set out to do, which is make money. The sequel was officially greenlit before the film even came out, and the future of DC’s Cinematic Universe began to develop.

We were already working under the assumption that the recently ‘confirmed’ Justice League was dependent on the success of Superman’s big reboot, and since that went swimmingly it’s time to start looking forward. While we would still have a few years to wait for Justice League, we can start casting our dream team right now!

Brian Kronner, Chris Tansuche, Amanda Denton, and I sat down and hashed out a cast of characters in a discussion that involved a lot of fighting and name-calling. Eventually we all agreed on who we generally wanted to see in the role, and who would bring something great to a Justice League movie. Some of these choices may seem unlikely, but they were decided upon with nothing but a fan’s love for the characters and the team in general. Starting with…

Superman – Henry Cavill

This was a no-brainer. Obviously Henry Cavill is here for the long haul, and we couldn’t be happier. Say what you will about Snyder’s Man of Steel, but we can all agree that once Cavill put on the cape he was Superman. A flawed, slightly tragic version of the character, but its still early, and his heroic career has time to grow. We would hope for a more developed and brighter look at Supes in Man of Steel 2, which will carry over well into Justice League.

Wonder Woman –  Gina Carano

We tried hard to not cast Gina Carano as the Amazon Warrior, but she just fits so perfectly! She has the build, the attitude, and the cojones to stand up to Batman and Superman, and she has proven herself in Haywire, showing that she is able to handle a strong female character who can kick ass and take names. We would expect a role in JL to translate over to a franchise for WW, which would be huge for the relatively new to Hollywood actress.

Flash – Garrett Hedlund

We are talking about Barry Allen here, although most of us would love to see Wally West in the role. It’s best to look at the New 52 version of Barry Allen when casting Garrett Hedlund, who definitely has the look. He would thrive on the team as the forensics scientist who happens to also be the fastest man alive, and Hedlund would bring heart to the role. Flash is arguably one of the key characters who would help the JL mesh as a team, and Hedlund could pull that off while launching a franchise of his own. He could also cultivate a pretty great relationship with the next member of the team…

Green Lantern – Jensen Ackles

Obviously assuming that Ryan Reynolds won’t return to the role after his previous flop as the character, we also have to take a guess as to which GL they would go with. We pick Jensen Ackles as the cocky, bravado filled Hal Jordan, in order to better benefit from his friendship with Barry Allen. Ackles has the humor and attitude to pull off a fantastic Hal Jordan, and any fan of Supernatural knows he can play the serious moments believably while pulling off the cocky funny guy as well. These are all great qualities of why he would do Green Lantern justice, but mainly, we just want to see him given the chance to shine he deserves.

Aquaman – Charlie Hunnam

We’ve been fans of Charlie Hunnam since Undeclared, and his role as badass biker Jax on Sons of Anarchy showcased his acting skills and a degree of royalty that would serve Aquaman well. He bulked up considerably for his role in Pacific Rim, and we think he has the chops to bring life to the King of Atlantis. Base the character off of Geoff Johns brilliant series that has changed the way most people see Aquaman, slap on some scalemail and Charlie’s already gnarly beard skills (because we loves us some bearded Aquaman), and we have a perfect Arthur Curry ready to condescend to the rest of the JL.

Cyborg – Michael B. Jordan

Cyborg is our everyman character, and as he played a key role in the formation of the Justice League with the launch of the New 52, he could do the same in the film version. This was our easiest character to cast, and Michael B. Jordan impressed us so much with his role in Chronicle that we had no dissenting votes. While he may be a bit on the small side to play the relatively large character of Victor Stone, with the right effects and robotic armor to bulk him up, Jordan could handle the role fantastically. He would also offer the perfect point of view for the audience to relate to these larger than life heroes, keeping them grounded in reality.

Batman – Ryan Gosling

This was a hard one to cast, as we have seen so many different actors take on the role over the years. With Christian Bale not returning, it opens up a new take on the character, and for our money we want to see Ryan Gosling wear the cowl. While he may have taken a step back from acting recently, this would be a huge role to come back for. He can play the playboy billionaire with the best of them, and then darken it up to pull off a new version of the Dark Knight to carry us forward in the DC Cinematic Universe.

Darkseid – Eamonn Walker

While we have little confirmation on Darkseid’s role in the film, chances are good that the powerhouse villain will be the right kind of threat to bring the heroes of the League together. And who better to play the role than Eamonn Walker, who has such a commanding voice and talent for these heavy dramatic roles. While a lot of the character would be effects based, you still need the imposing figure of Eamonn to match the booming voice and give the JL a run for their money. Plus, we just love Eamonn Walker and everything he does.

That wraps up our time on the Casting Couch, and while we still have a long way to go until we see a Justice League movie fully develop, this cast is a good start to bring us an epic look at DC’s mightiest heroes.

What do you think of our cast for Justice League? Are we out of our minds or did we hit this one out of the park? Sound off in the comments section below!