Creature Commandos’ David Harbour on Frankenstein Inspirations, James Gunn’s DC Future, and More

David Harbour has been a fan-favorite performer since he debuted as Jim Hopper in the first season of Stranger Things back in 2016, with each year bringing him more opportunities to take on thrilling new characters, much to the delight of audiences. Back in 2021, he finally entered the world of superheroes when he played Marvel’s Red Guardian in Black Widow, but as has become a new normal, Harbour is dipping his toes into the DC pool, as he voices Frankenstein in the animated Creature Commandos. The actor has already had opportunities to bring familiar characters to life, but by voicing Frankenstein, he’s channeling the spirit of one of the most iconic characters in all of literature. Creature Commandos is set to premiere on Max on December 5th.

With there being so many different takes on Frankenstein over the years, Harbour shared with ComicBook what motivated his version of the character.

“I think it was important to see the character on the page that James [Gunn] had written and there was a lot of opportunity for a guy who is trying to do the right thing who has been cobbled together through a bunch of things, and who has this intense narcissism and need,” the actor expressed. “One of the colors that I wanted to play with, though, is I remember from [Kenneth] Branagh’s Frankenstein years ago with [Robert] De Niro as the monster, he had this thing where he’s reading books and he wanted to be this companion. He was built to be this sophisticated, erudite companion, and he’s just a monster, and I really liked that idea … I feel like there’s this inadequate component where he does feel like he’s brilliant and he’s going to charm you, and then out of that, comes this insane rage and this insane passion, because he’s built with someone else’s spleen and someone else’s liver.”

In regards to whether he let previous incarnations of the character either inspire him or dissuade him, Harbour explained, “There is the Boris Karloff, the old, original Frankenstein’s Monster idea, which I think that … [my version’s] not a stiff. There’s something a little more fluid about him, he’s a little more of an action hero. But I did like the De Niro take, I thought that movie was such an interesting idea of what they were trying to do. Again, it’s these, I don’t think it was that successful, I think it was a bit of a miss, but I love Kenneth Branagh, I love what he’s trying to do, and I always like that kind of take, I’d never really seen the monster as being intended to be a sophisticated companion. I remember that. But it was more impressions and things that I’d had.”

He added, “I didn’t want to go specifically either for or against type, I made that mistake in the past, and I like to approach things as fresh as I possibly can. I think people’s associations with Frankenstein are interesting, to play the character, because you’ll subvert them and surprise them just by the nature of the script itself, the Creature Commandos are so weird. I think it’s other people’s interpretations that are most interesting. Mine is gonna be unique and specific to what I find interesting and the character itself as written.”

[RELATED: The Weird Origin Story of the Original Creature Commandos]

Creature Commandos tracks a secret team of incarcerated monsters recruited for missions deemed too dangerous for humans. When all else fails… they’re your last, worst option. Cast includes Steve Agee as Economos, Maria Bakalova as Princess Ilana, Anya Chalotra as Circe, Zoe Chao as Nina Mazursky, Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., Sean Gunn as GI Robot & Weasel, David Harbour as Frankenstein, Alan Tudyk as Dr. Phosphorus, Indira Varma as The Bride, and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller.

With James Gunn hoping to embrace a model similar to the MCU, in which there’s consistency with performers across multiple mediums and the opportunity for intertwining stories, Harbour confirmed that there hasn’t been substantial talk of Frankenstein’s future.

On whether those conversations have taken place, the actor noted, “No. We talked about what it might look like and we had casual conversations, but no, nothing more.” However, if Harbour was to bring his character to life in a live-action project, as far as whether he’d like to sport heavy prosthetics or lean into CGI for the larger-than-life figure, he expressed, “I like the idea of a combination. I mean, James seems to do very well with the reality of CG stuff. Like, what he did in Guardians [of the Galaxy Vol. 3] with those animals, I just thought that little girl weasel-y, otter thing was so sweet, like the most emotional character in the whole thing, so I think he has the ability to do it. I think there is some fun to be had in enhanced practical effects. I do like a guy in a puppet suit. Even from our first season of Stranger Things, the Demogorgon was a guy in a suit, and I just love that. There’s something really fun and electric about live-action. I know I’ve done a bunch of it and it was hard but there’s something, like a little kid, about getting dressed up like a monster and being on set that, to me, feels more satisfying than the blue dots and the mo-cap thing. I feel like you’re in it more, too.”

Frankenstein is only the latest thrilling character that Harbour has embraced, with the performer setting the record straight on who would win if things came to blows between his Frankenstein, Red Guardian, Hellboy, or Santa Claus.

The actor joked, “I just have an initial, I don’t know why, but an initial impulse that [Violent Night‘s] Santa is going to walk out the winner. I just think that there’s something about the magic of Christmas that just beats the crap out of everything else. “

Creature Commandos debuts on Max on December 5th.