Superman Star Prefers New DC Universe Role Over Past MCU Character (& He’s Right)

Actor Frank Grillo explains why he prefers playing his DC Universe character Rick Flagg Sr. over Crossbones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. During a panel promoting Tulsa King at FAN EXPO Dallas (via Screen Rant), Grillo discussed his experience working in the two massive franchises. He admitted that at one point, he believed Crossbones could be a big player in the MCU but was disappointed when that didn’t come to fruition. He seems to be having more fun in the DCU, as he has already portrayed Rick Flagg Sr. in multiple franchise projects, including this summer’s Superman.

“It was unfortunate because Crossbones isn’t onscreen that much, and this is years ago. People love that character, and Marvel seems to have reused every other character except Crossbones,” Grillo said. “Now he’s popping up in Spider-Man comics and Daredevil comics because he’s a great villain, so I was expecting to have a lot of fun with it. But unfortunately, he perished kind of quickly. But I love working with James Gunn. I did the voice for Creature Commandos, and then I’m in Peacemaker, which is coming up in August. And before that, it’s Superman with Rick Flag. So, it’s different; it’s more of an adventure than the Marvel stuff was.”

Grillo made his MCU in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier. His Brock Rumlow was established as a HYDRA operative who had infiltrated SHIELD. After suffering severe injuries in a fight against Sam Wilson, Rumlow returned in Captain America: Civil War, working as the terrorist Crossbones. The character dies early in that film; his death is one of the catalysts behind the passing of the Sokovia Accords.

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Previously, Grillo highlighted some of the differences between Marvel and DC. While he recognizes both have their strengths, what’s appealing to him about the DCU is that “it’s much more contained.” He explained that he likes being involved with the DCU at the beginning, helping the burgeoning franchise grow.

Grillo’s feelings are understandable. Not only will he have racked up more DC appearances than Marvel by summer’s end, he’s also getting an opportunity to star in a variety of projects. Creature Commandos is an animated series; Peacemaker leans more into action comedy; Superman is a big-budget summer tentpole blockbuster. Those are three very different sandboxes to play in to explore various sides of Rick Flagg Sr. For an actor, that has to be a lot of fun; frequently returning to a recurring role in a larger franchise can run stale if a character’s run its course, but DC is trying to find some interesting ways to incorporate Rick Flagg Sr. into the proceedings.

It’s a shame the full potential of the MCU’s Crossbones was never realized. As Grillo alludes to, the villain has encountered many different Marvel heroes in the comics, so it would have been entertaining to see him cross paths with Daredevil on Daredevil: Born Again or be a foil to Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. But the MCU has always had a lot of moving pieces, and Crossbones’ minimized role was an unfortunate byproduct of that. At least for him, stepping away from Marvel gave him an opportunity to take on a more substantial role in another shared universe, and hopefully Rick Flagg Sr. is around for years to come.