15 Upcoming Comic Book Movie Performances That Will Kick Ass

Tom Hardy as Venom? Well played, Sony. Well played.

By Simon Gallagher /

Sony/WC

It's no longer the case that the comic book movie is the reserve of genre actors or emerging stars yet to see their big breaks: it is now a genre where actors come to make their name and launch on to even starrier projects. It's also the next inevitable step for actors who've caught Oscar heat and who are surfing the crest of a wave at the peak of their careers.

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Superhero characters are now written with a complexity rarely seen in tentpoles. Batman introduced the idea of the ghosts of the past, X-Men introduced civil rights allegories, Spider-Man established the idea of puberty allegory and most interestingly, modern films have introduced shades of morality and firmly grown up ideas alongside the fun.

As the material has got better, the requirement for performance - even in ensembles - has grown as well, and it's almost no longer possible for actors to avoid being bombarded with the inevitable question of which comic book hero they'd play, regardless of what junket they're actually working. As long as it means we continue to see the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch, Ben Affleck and Oscar Isaac hired, long may that obsession continue.

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Given that we'll get to see Oscar winners, emerging stars and genuine A-listers dipping their toes into the genre in the coming years, the pickings are good when it comes to upcoming comic book movies...