The Batman: 10 Perfect Roles Mahershala Ali Could Play
4. Azrael
Aside from Gotham and various video game appearances, Azrael hasn’t done an awful lot outside of the comics. It’s a shame too, because he’s a character with a lot of depth that a silver screen adaptation could explore.
Mahershala Ali will have to become handy with a sword to play Blade, so why not two birds one stone it and imagine him as Azrael too?
Jean-Paul Valley, to give Azrael his real name, starts out as a computer science graduate student. He’s completely unaware that he’s the latest in a long line of assassin enforcers for The Sacred Order Of Saint Dumas. He’s been brainwashed since birth by The System, a psychological conditioning program to turn him into the next Azrael.
Once his father dies, Valley’s conditioning is activated, and he becomes Azrael.
On his first mission, he is sent to kill an arms dealer and crosses paths with Batman. Once the two meet though, Azrael sees the light and rebels against his brainwashing, saving Batman and deciding to fight criminals rather than follow his destiny within The Sacred Order.
Similar to Bronze Tiger, Ali’s hypothetical Azrael could feature as a villain but move to the side of the heroes in future flicks.