The comic book genre is a real cinematic tour de force right now. The highest-grossing movie franchise of all time is the Marvel Cinematic Universe ($9.1 billion), five of the twenty-three movies to have ever grossed more than $1 billion at the box office are comic book movies, and seven of the top fifty highest-grossing movies ever made are based on Marvel or DC properties. Actors of the highest calibre have been attracted to star in comic book movies - and yet only one has ever won an Oscar. That was Heath Ledger, who posthumously won Best Supporting Actor for his performance as The Joker in 2008's The Dark Knight. The performances of actors in the genre have long been far removed from the campy ones associated with Adam West's Batman and the genre itself has transcended its popcorny roots many times. Captain America: The Winter Soldier, for example, was a brilliant piece of conspiracy fiction and epitomised why more Academy recognition is warranted. The actor/character combinations in this article could make that happen...
8. Bryan Cranston - Norman Osborn
Bryan Cranston simply belongs in a comic book movie. Loads of fans wanted him as the new Lex Luthor in the DC Extended Universe, prior to the somewhat bizarre casting of Jesse Eisenberg - and Cranston himself has has said that he'd love to play Mister Sinister in an X-Men movie. However, a great match for the Breaking Bad star would undoubtedly be Norman Osborn. His portrayal of Walter White is the iconic villain performance in modern television and he could easily make Osborn the movie equivalent - especially if Osborn takes on the role of the next big-bad in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which he easily could now that Spider-Man and his supporting characters have entered the fray. If Osborn was part of movie adaptations of the likes of the Siege and Dark Reign storylines, Cranston could totally steal the show in the franchise. Plus, Osborn often portrays himself publicly as a good guy, while being evil behind the scenes - Cranston's previous memorable portrayals of decent human beings like Hal Wilkerson prove he could play both ends of the good/evil spectrum expertly.
