Five DC Comics Characters The Rock Could Play

Yesterday, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson tantalized fans with more clues as to what DC Comics character he's reportedly already set to play, with a concept out to writers in Hollywood now. It's not Green Lantern, the hero many fans expected it to be since he had put John Stewart out there as his personal fan-favorite at one point...but he's a character with no significant big screen history, but a name that's recognizable and Superman-level powers. It's difficult to imagine that they would bring Johnson in to play a character like The Demon or Swamp Thing in the rumored Dark Universe movie, and equally difficult to picture them making him a star in a DC Comics movie and then not also utilizing his high profile for the expected Justice League film. That narrows the field considerably, especially when thinking of characters who might also be able to support a solo film. That he said the character hasn't been fully realized onscreen before also suggests that characters with a rich TV history are also out of the picture. While somebody who had a short-lived show or a few guest appearances on Smallville might make the cut, somebody like The Flash -- now on his second TV show -- is probably out of the question. Based on his comments, who could Johnson be playing on the big screen? We've got a few ideas...

Shazam He loves Black Adam, but Black Adam is, at the end of the day, not going to headline a feature film, let alone a feature film franchise. Shazam would also be great because it would allow Warner Bros. to dip their toes in an area where Marvel hasn't yet: magic. Yes, they've got Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch coming up...but based on comments from studio head Kevin Feige, that "magic" is going to be more similar to Thor's god-like super-science than anything actually supernatural. If there's one drawback to Shazam, it's that he's had others put a stamp on him already. Maybe not in a major theatrical release over the last thirty years, but with movie serials, an animated series and more, it's a character that a lot of people remember being in other media besides comics. People like Archer, for instance...

Martian Manhunter One of the only Justice Leaguers never to have headlined his own movie or TV series, J'Onn J'Onzz the Manhunter From Mars does have a popular live-action counterpart on Smallville but it's unlikely that would intimidate Johnson much. He's also on the power level of Superman and the "Manhunter" name, with or without the "Martian," is one with a storied history at DC and that they'd probably love to get in play onscreen.

Lobo Leaving aside the fact that Rock/Lobo stories are as old as time, there's the fact that the Main Man is basically a professional wrestler; he's a musclebound maniac who's so over-the-top theatrical that it's hard not to see him as a bit of a joke, even when he's taking himself deadly serious. But he'll kill you for that, so try not to mention it. He's gone toe-to-toe with Superman, maimed Green Lanterns and more in the course of his time with DC Comics, so he certainly fits the power bill. The real problem in terms of giving the role to Johnson is that the New 52 has re-envisioned Lobo as more Twilight than Rambo. Doing a film based on "classic" Loki would probably demand a 180 on the part of the publisher, and it seems like in an environment where the New 52 is supposed to be making characters more film friendly, that's not the plan.

Orion Really, any of the New Gods would do in terms of being fan-favorite without much mainstream awareness or baggage. It would also tie into the Justice League film which, given recent events in the comics and the Justice League: War direct-to-video movie, will probably feature Darkseid as the villain. We pick Orion, then, just because he kind of already reminds us of a character The Rock would play. If he's keen to put his own stamp on a character, why not one who lends himself to being Rock-ified so that it retains the integrity of all involved? Orion, also, has been reimagined as a Wonder Woman supporting player in the New 52, which is a relationship that they might be keen to explore onscreen.

Deathstroke the Terminator This one is the least likely considering there's already a fan-favorite live-action version going on with Arrow...but it's not big screen, so it's plausible that Johnson doesn't consider it. And, really, can you think of a better guy to play Deathstroke in all of his antiheroic/villainous/heroic facets? He'd be an interesting guy to explore onscreen the way they have in the comics, in that he could play a legitimate secondary Justice League villain while also supporting his own film because deep down he's not a villain at heart.