Alright! To follow up on my Definitive Comic Book Castings post from a while ago, I thought it would be fun to do the flip side and do some casting choices that failed completely.
For the record, it is very hard to determine what differentiates between a bad casting and bad handling of material. Even though I fundamentally disagree with how Superman is treated in Man of Steel, Henry Cavill's a great casting. It's just a bad interpretation of the character. So I tried to stick to actors who just failed at bringing the character to life.
Maybe their performance was phoned in, maybe it was too over the top. Maybe they just lacked charisma or gave off the wrong vibe for the character. Either way, as I scan my list, literally all of these actors have done absolutely amazing work in other movies.
Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor
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| Sorry I had to put an image of Christopher Reeve's Superman on here. |
I love the 1978 Superman. Love love love it. It's the perfect origin story, with the perfect balance of action, cheese, and romance. But the biggest thing holding it back from being the definitive Superman movie is how wacky Lux Luthor is. All due respect to Gene Hackman, but he brings the wrong energy to the role, and his silly real estate schemes and posse are significant departures from his cold and calculating comic counterpart. And he's not bald... that's always annoyed me.
Ben Affleck as Daredevil
Ben Affleck makes a good Batman (Or at least he would have). Ben Affleck as a different crusader with a hatred of the scum and corruption of his city that uses only his martial arts skills and brilliant mind to fight crime doesn't turn out as well. While the movie doesn't do him any favors, the choices Ben Affleck makes here just don't suit Daredevil. Keep the mask and glasses on, because his "blind" face was... atrocious. It's not fun.
The entire cast of Catwoman
No explanation needed
Brie Larson as Captain Marvel
It's kind of unfair putting her on the list since I'll likely warm up to this interpretation through The Marvels later next year, but Brie Larson's Captain Marvel isn't doing it for me. She just gives off a very smug vibe and lacks most of the charisma that made Captain Marvel great on Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. She'll likely get better, but for now, she's one of the worst MCU casting choices (But I have full confidence that The Marvels will course-correct some of the flaws from her earlier appearances).
Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze
Mr. Freeze is a very sweet and sensitive villain. He's not really a villain, either, he's just a guy trying to save his frozen wife. He's one of the most human characters in the Batman mythos, which is why Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze... yikes. Arnold Schwarzenegger is good as the typecast tough macho guy with fun quips, but as Mr. Freeze? Mr. Schwarzenegger certainly didn't bring humanity to the big screen, in any case. Just ice puns. But they were pretty cool.
Anna Paquin as Rogue
The X-Men movies mischaracterized most of the characters they played with, but most of the cast really holds up as the movie version of those characters. I may not like Cyclops in the movies, but James Marsden is a great Cyclops. Can't say the same for Anna Paquin. She lacked the fiery spirit of Rogue from X-Men: The Animated Series, the southern drawl associated with the character, and a lot of the charisma that made Rogue a good character in the first place. The movies emphasized "sad mutants, no one likes them" much more than "Rogue can fly and has super strength."
Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice had a lot of problems, but Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor is the single greatest one. For a villain that's bringing the world's two greatest heroes to their knees, Eisenberg's psychotic quirks ripped straight from a Looney Tunes cartoon don't match the grimdark serious tone of the movie. The self-important air combined with rambling statements and complete butchering of an awesome character ruins it. Especially when Bryan Cranston was considered for the role... like... that's perfect casting... why?
Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man
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| No Way Home will bring redemption, I'm sure. |
I like Andrew Garfield in most everything he's in, but Peter Parker is an exception. He gives off a very smug and jerky vibe to the awkward and shy high schooler, which just made an already dark and serious reboot even more of a misfire. His Spider-Man's nearly perfect, albeit much more in-line with the arrogant Spider-Man from the Ultimate Marvel imprint.
David Thewlis as Ares
David Thewlis worked fine as the sly and manipulative politician in the shadows. You know what didn't work? Buff CGI David Thewlis. Blame it on the studio-mandated CGI slog ending, but buff CGI David Thewlis looks absolutely terrible and looks even worse with a giant CGI baby head fighting Wonder Woman. Either keep him sly or get someone naturally buff.
The entire cast of Fant4stic
No explanation needed
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