Summary
Bringing a superhero to life on the big screen takes a lot of work. Studios need to make sure they have a story that will appeal to a wide audience and the special effects budget to make these heroes come to life in a convincing way. However, the actors chosen to play these roles are also pivotal in making these characters convincing.
Fortunately, comic book fans have been spoiled by having some great talent take on these roles in the past. There have been somegreat choices made in terms of castingthroughout the genre’s history, but some actors suittheir superhero rolesto a much greater extent than others.
6Jon Bernthal: The Punisher
Fourth Time’s The Charm
The Punisher is an iconicMarvelcharacter who goes to extreme lengths to fight crime. This violent vigilante has had many movie iterations before, with actors like Dolph Lungren, Thomas Jane, and Ray Stevenson all taking on the role in the past. However, fans didn’t get to see the most accurate portrayal of this character until Jon Bernthal played the roleinDaredevilSeason 2.
Frank Castle is a broken man who is trying to get revenge on the people who murdered his family. To do so, he goes to some extreme lengths, many of which make him quite unrelatable to the audience. Jon Bernthal was able to play a more vulnerable and endearing version of The Punisher in some of his scenes, though, and did so without sacrificing any of his harder edges. As such, he easily became the best person to portray this character.
5Ryan Reynolds: Deadpool
A Difficult Comic Hero To Bring To Life
Deadpool is an outlandish character from theX-Mencomics, one that many fans thought it was impossible to bring into live action. This sentiment is most evident in the subpar version of the character seen inX-Men Origins: Wolverine. The movie chose to sew the mercenary’s mouth shut and make him a random conglomeration of other mutant powers. Before this reveal in the third act of the movie, though, fans seemed to enjoy Ryan Reynolds' quick-witted portrayal of the famed character. It seemed that Reynolds himself agreed, and he pushed for aDeadpoolsolo movie that was moreaccurate to the source material.
The actor was finally given the chance to bring Deadpool to life again in 2016, and he did so in the most faithful way possible. Ryan Reynolds' natural charm and great comedic timing made him the perfect fit for the fourth-wall-breaking mutant, and fans will get to see this version of the character again as Disney plans to fold this successful portrayal of Deadpool into the MCU.
4Patrick Stewart: Professor X
Stoically Leading The X-Men Franchise
When Fox wasbringing theX-Mento lifein the late 90s, the landscape of superhero media was very different.Batman & Robinhad just been released to poor reviews, and so, many movie-goers were left thinking that all comic book adaptations were silly ideas purely made for children. However, that all changed when an actor of the caliber of Patrick Stewart took on the role of Professor X.
Fans had noticed the similarities between the legendary stage actor and the bald mutant whenX-Men: The Animated Serieswas airing. However, it was never thought that such a powerful actor would agree to play such a role. Fans were shocked, though, when Stewart was cast, especially when he brought the quiet dignity needed to play the stoic leader of the X-Men. His portrayal was so accurate that it has been difficult for audiences to picture anyone else in the role.
3Christopher Reeve: Superman
The Original Casting Highlighted How It Should Be Done
The first superhero to be brought to the big screen was Superman in 1978. At the time, comic books were leaning very heavily on the impossible feats of superheroes, and it seemed equally impossible to bring any of these characters to life in live-action.
However, this perception changed when Christopher Reeve first put on the costume to play Superman. Reeve’s inherent charm made him instantly likable as the heroic Superman, and he could easily switch between this portrayal to act as the bumbling Clark Kent when necessary. It may have been a different era for the genre, but Christopher Reeve was so good at playing Superman that he had the world believing that a man could actually fly.
2Robert Downey Junior: Iron Man
HeIsIron Man
When it comes to building a successful movie franchise, it helps when studios put their best foot forward. Fortunately, that is exactly what Marvel did when they cast Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man in 2008. This first movie kicked off what fans nowknow to be the MCU, and the actor kept returning to fight alongside The Avengers for over a decade. As a result, he quickly became the face of the hugely successful franchise.
It seems that Downey’s portrayal is linked to the DNA of the MCU, as moviegoers are still waiting for him to reprise the role. The actor’s natural swagger and charisma made it easy for him to realistically play the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist. Disney gleefully saw the box office of the movies he appeared in soar.
1J. K. Simmons: J. Jonah Jameson
It’s Hard To Tell Where The Actor Ends And The Character Begins
J. Jonah Jamesonmay not be the most integral part of theSpider-Manmythos. He isn’t even someone that fans could call a superhero. However, J. K. Simmons is so great at playing the old newspaper crank that he is still talked about as one of the greatest castings in movie history.
The role of Jameson is a simple one. He is there to blow his lid and yell at people who bring up the name of a certain spider-themed vigilante. J. K. Simmons was first cast as the character in Sam Raimi’sSpider-Manmovie, and he nailed the portrayal so well that Marvel even folded him into the MCU nearly twenty years later. Everything about the character is done perfectly by Simmons, from the iconic voice and look to the exaggerated mannerisms. Someone else will eventually need to take on this role in the future, and they may be great. However, they will have a great deal going against them due to Simmons' spectacular portrayal.
