12 Ridiculous Castings That Almost Ruined DC Comic Book Movies
Think Jared Leto was miscast? You ain't seen nothing yet...
There seems to be a culture of controversy around DC movie casting decisions: Michael Keaton had it, Heath Ledger had it, Ben Affleck and Jared Leto too. But, if you can believe it, the company (and veteran collaborators Warner Bros, more often than not) have occasionally flirted with even greater controversy by almost casting frankly ridiculous people in their movies.
In almost every case, the actors considered left field choices for DC (at least those mentioned already) worked out well. Maybe Leto shouldn't be considered in those terms, but he was screwed badly in the edit, so he gets something of a pass. Had they pressed ahead with some of the other baffling choices they've almost made over the years, the success rate would surely have been worse.
Sure, studios and companies need to make statements in their early days of production, and hiring stunt casts is one way to get publicity, but there's a difference between bringing in Heath Ledger and almost putting Jack Black in a Green Lantern costume.
Just think how much worse things could have been if these near miss castings had actually happened...
12. Hulk Hogan - Batman & Robin
The Role: Mr Freeze
Who Was Cast Instead: Arnold Schwarzenegger
What Happened?
As further evidence that there was something fundamentally wrong with Joel Schumacher's tenure as Batman director, Hogan was third choice to portray Mr. Freeze (behind Arnold Schwarzenegger and runner-up Sylvester Stallone). He needed someone hefty because the costume weighed a frankly ridiculous 75 lbs.
Mercifully, Schwarzenegger passed the audition to temporarily flush his career and legacy as an actor down the drain with some of the sickest puns ever committed to screen.
The Results
While Arnie wasn't exactly great (mostly thanks to the material), he at least sold the emotional undercurrent of the pantomime character. Hulk would haven been an unmitigated, monstrous disaster with no secondary depths and even more misplaced joy in the puns.