Apparently nobody wants to be the MCU Sorcerer Supreme. According to today’s rumor mill, the actor most recently mentioned as top of the list, Ethan Hawke, wasn’t in fact offered the role. Joaquin Phoenix was courted hardcore by Marvel but never bit. Other names bandied about in speculative roundups by geek-media prognosticators or overheard whispered in casting offices include Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy, Jared Leto, Christian Bale, Justin Theroux, Joseph Fiennes, Viggo Mortensen—and numerous other excellent, frequently bearded, vaguely mysterious, mature-but-still-fuckable white actors.
But… such white actors! I mean, Jim Caviezel? As written, the character Stephen Strange is a white guy, but then so was Johnny Storm. And Spider-Man, and Thor, and Captain America. The point being diversity isn’t necessarily just a trendy gimmick to goose sales with controversy—in 2014 heroes just don’t have to be white dudes to connect with big audiences.
There’s nothing in the character’s origins as a brilliant, arrogant, ruined neurosurgeon turned mystic master that requires his being Anglo-Saxon. Even his name could be easily explained by a blended family, international marriage, or adoption, but then again—he's a wizard, so maybe explanations wouldn't be required.
We’ve learned little about the plot or script for the first film to delve into the magical side of the MCU. Happily, we do know that it’s not going to be the standard origin story that usually ends with the character becoming the hero we know. One of the best Easter eggs in Captain America: Winter Soldier was “Stephen Strange” being targeted by HYDRA’s killer helicarriers. That would suggest that by the time we meet him in his own movie, he’ll already BE the Sorcerer Supreme, defending the Earth from mystical and otherdimensional threats. For casting, that calls for an actor of a certain age and gravitas, who can play grand (he’s a sorcerer) in front of green screen and stay grounded. Director Scott Derrickson (Sinister) has a horror background and most of the names attached to the project so far have been leading men with an affinity for intelligent, conflicted antiheroes in somewhat dark material.
[Full disclosure: Waaay back in February of 2013 I wrote my own fan-cast post about the then-rumored project and my top picks then were all white with one Hispanic actor as ‘wild card.’ I still say Richard Armitage or Timothy Olyphant would be terrific in the role, if more in-the-box.]
With Black Panther very likely on the horizon, some lucky young black actor seems poised join Samuel L Jackson and Anthony Mackie, the only two black actors in the MCU (besides Idris Elba as Heimdall), as T’Challa and be the first to topline a major Marvel solo superhero movie. That shouldn’t keep Marvel from exploring the talent and drawing-power of non-white or non-Anglo actors in other roles, however, so we’ve compiled some compelling candidates below for your dorktastic delectation.
ODED FEHR: One of the most popular choices with fans on Facebook and Tumblr, Tel Aviv-born Fehr is a familiar face from The Mummy and Resident Evil: Extinction and a familiar voice from Justice League and Young Justice animated series. Fehr may not exactly be an A-lister, but he’s got the physical presence and charisma to play the good Doctor—plus a really deep, lovely voice, always a good asset for a spellcaster.
PEDRO PASCAL: Millions of geeks lost their shit when he got his head popped as Oberyn Martell on Game of Thrones this year, so casting the Chilean sex-bomb as Sorcerer Supreme would capitalize on one of the greatest star-making character introductions ever. And again, that voice.
GODFREY GAO: Gao, born in Taiwan, is one of the youngest—and definitely the hottest—actors on the list. Casting a Chinese actor as a character who travels to the mystic East and seeks out a mysterious, ancient guru for the secrets of life (and magic) would add a new dimension to the story. But would the The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones star be too much “mysterious Orientalism” in the face of the original’s colonialism?
IDRIS ELBA: Who cares if he’s already Heimdall? Despite his perfection in all ways, Elba might be getting a little too old to play the Black Panther as young king in a 2018 (or so) movie, but it takes a while to get to be a neurosurgeon, longer still to get so good as to become a jerk about it and fall from grace but then climb a mountain and learn all of magic. Audiences ready for a non-white leading man with Elba's charisma want him to play everyone from James Bond to the Doctor—the man has a draw. And an open challenge to Photoshop artists out there—put him in the pointy cowl and amulet and see if the Internet doesn’t melt.
SAMUEL ANDERSON: Doctor Who’s Danny Pink is probably a little too young and untested to headline a Marvel superhero movie, but he’s soooooo dreamy and Marvel has excelled at selecting interesting up-and-coming talent as well as making offbeat choices for big roles.
What say ye, geeks? Who would you put forth as the new onscreen non-white face of Marvel magic? And just a friendly warning to Marvel: if you take another meeting with Nicolas Cage, IT’S OVER.
