Green Lantern was one of DC’s biggest flops, a failure that set the company back as they tried to compete with Marvel Studios. However, everything old is new again at DC, as DC Studios prepares for another go at the Green Lantern mythos with Lanterns. DC Studios head James Gunn has teased that the show will be more grounded and even joked about inviting Green Lantern star Ryan Reynolds back for the show. Reynolds, who has found great superhero success as Deadpool, refused the invite, but the actor joining the new DCU is too tantalizing to ignore.
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Ryan Reynolds is a beloved actor, and seeing him in a DC movie would make a lot of fans happy. The DC Universe is full of amazing characters, and many of them would be amazing if they were played by Reynolds. Some characters have already been cast that Reynolds would be perfect for — Reynolds as Metamorpho would be brilliant — but there are some characters, several of which are very well-known, that Reynolds would knock out of the park.
Wild Dog Is Violent and Hilarious
Wild Dog debuted in Wild Dog #1, around the time when the Punisher was one of the most popular characters in comics. Wild Dog is a Punisher knockoff — he uses guns, has no problems with lethal force, and has a big logo on his chest. The character was a D-list vigilante and disappeared for years after his miniseries, never reaching the popularity of the character that inspired him. Wild Dog has bummed around the DC Universe ever since, with his most entertaining turn coming in the Young Animal book Cave Carson Has a Cybernetic Eye, where he became a violent, profane soldier working with Cave Carson.
Wild Dog most recently appeared in the anthology book Batman: The Brave and the Bold, working as a down-on-his-luck vigilante in his native Quad Cities. These recent versions of Wild Dog are directly in Reynolds’s wheelhouse. Reynolds does a great job with funny, violent characters and his Wild Dog would make the character a fan favorite.
Ryan Reynolds Would Find the Heart and Humor in Cliff Steele
The Doom Patrol are the strangest superheroes of them all, each member having gone through some trauma that makes them who they are. The live-action Doom Patrol series showcased the team in all of their weird glory, with Cliff Steele being brought to life by Brendan Fraser. Steele has always been the heart of the Doom Patrol, the most human member of the team even though he has the least flesh of them all. Fraser was able to play the character’s humor and pathos perfectly, something that Reynolds would also excel at.
Steele has a lot in common with Reynolds’s Deadpool; both of them defend their bleeding hearts and desire for love with humor and are capable of great violence. Steele is the most typical “superhero” of the Doom Patrol, with a capacity for violence and mayhem that Reynolds would definitely play well. Steele often gets the best lines in any Doom Patrol adventure, and Reynolds’s voice coming out of that robot body would work so well.
[RELATED: Deadpool 4: Ryan Reynolds’ Vision for Deadpool’s MCU Future Is Not What Marvel Fans Expect]
Reynolds Would Make a Brilliant Mister Miracle
The New Gods are one of DC’s most interesting pantheons. The heroes of New Genesis have been fighting a forever war against the monsters of Apokolips, led by the evil Darkseid. Each New God has their own foibles, and the most human has always been Mister Miracle. Scott Free was traded to Darkseid as part of a peace deal and was brought up in the hell of Apokolips, eventually finding love with Female Fury Big Barda. That love allowed both of them to escape their bondage, becoming heroes and battling the forces of evil with the New Gods, on their own, and with the Justice League. Mister Miracle became known as the greatest escape artist of three worlds, becoming a celebrity on Earth thanks to his ability to escape any trap.
Mister Miracle is the most human of the New Gods, which is perfect for Reynolds. Reynolds’s best characters are charming and funny, hiding their hurt under their bluster. That describes Miracle perfectly. His love of Barda is his most important characteristic, something that is reminiscent of Deadpool’s love of Vanessa. Sure, Miracle isn’t known for the same kind of profanity as Deadpool, but Reynolds has proven that he can still be funny without depending on cursing and gross-out humor. Reynolds’s Mister Miracle would be amazing.
Reynolds as Wally West Would Be a Riot
Wally West is the first sidekick to graduate. West began his superheroic career as Kid Flash, working with Barry Allen and the Teen Titans before retiring. However, the death of Allen in Crisis on Infinite Earths saw West take up the mantle of his predecessor. West struggled as the Flash, but eventually was able to outshine Barry Allen. Wally became the Flash for an entire generation of DC fans, his humor and heroism defining him. Wally West was the main Flash until the return of Allen in 2008, and spent years in limbo because of the New 52 and DC trying to make Barry Allen the one and only Flash. West has returned to the mantle of the Flash, bringing his family with him, and has shown that superheroes with a family are valid.
Some would say that Reynolds is a little old to play Wally West, but at this point, West is a married father of two teens, so Reynolds’s age isn’t a problem. Plus, he has real-life experience being a father and husband, something West needs. Reynolds can easily play West. West is known for his irreverent, quippy style of humor and Reynolds can play that in his sleep.
Reynolds Would Make a Perfect Comic-Accurate Green Arrow
Stephen Amell’s tenure as Oliver Queen has given fans a certain view of the character that is actually nothing like the comics. The Oliver Queen of the Arrowverse is basically just Batman with a bow and arrow, but the comic Green Arrow is actually the opposite of Batman. Green Arrow is a bleeding-heart liberal, an outspoken man who never stops fighting for his beliefs. He’s a complicated man, one who always tries to do the right thing and messes up very often. He’s funny and charming, but also abrasive and standoffish.
Reynolds is perfect for a comic-accurate Green Arrow. He has the good looks, the sense of humor, and can play annoying as well as he can endearing. All of that is Green Arrow in a nutshell and Reynolds has just enough edge to make his Green Arrow dangerous. Green Arrow is also the easiest DC character to imagine with a foul mouth, something that Reynolds has proven to be quite adroit at. Oliver is also one of the older DC heroes, so Reynolds’s age isn’t a problem.
