David Dastmalchian reveals which DCU heroes and villains he would love to play in the future after his experience with motion capture on Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. Dastmalchian has already played an iconic role in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad as the unexpectedly tragic Polka-Dot Man. However, his voice acting skills and new motion capture experience could make him an ideal candidate for some of the more CGI-heavy DCU characters.
In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, promoting Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Dastmalchian also shares his excitement regarding James Gunn’s role as the co-CEO of DC Studios. He explains how Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania has opened his mind to a ton of possibilities for new DCU characters. Dastmalchian also reveals that he believes DC has a stronger line-up of villains than Marvel.
David Dastmalchian: After doing this incredible role through motion capture, I feel like there’s no limit to the number of characters that I would love to see or bring to life in both the DC and the Marvel Universe. Ranging from the Scarecrow to the Mad Hatter all the way to Krypto. Gosh, there’s so many.
I always felt [DC] had the best villains; I always felt that way… On the DC side of things, it was definitely Scarecrow, Solomon Grundy; maybe through motion capture. Although they would probably want to hire somebody a little more big than me, I’d be willing to go to the gym and get as big as I could possibly get for Grundy.
There’s so many, and James is the perfect person to be the captain of that ship. It’s just the most exciting time for us DC fans to see what he’s doing. He’s a legend, he’s a genius, and he’s a beautiful human being. I hope that at some point there’s room for Firestorm and Martian Man Hunter.
How James Gunn Can Leverage DC’s Villains For The New DCU
Dastmalchian has shown an incredible range in his acting abilities with the different approaches to comedy with both his Ant-Man and The Suicide Squad characters. He taps into pathos and tragedy with Polka-Dot Man, which brings this ridiculous character to life and instantly draws audiences in. Gunn is tapping into animation, has immense experience with motion capture performances for a number of his characters, and has an excellent collaborative relationship with Dastmalchian, which could make this the perfect match.
The villains of DC are some of the most iconic and fascinating in the superhero lexicon, with Batman’s rogues’ gallery delivering a wide variety of different characters. One of Marvel’s pitfalls has been how quickly the villains are defeated, but DC could break this mold, making their stories stand out from the MCU. One possibility is to explore the origins of the villains and how they came to be.
Another possibility is to use the traditional comic book approach and simply not kill off these iconic and powerful antagonists. This opens the door to endless possibilities for returns, longer arcs, and even solo movies focused on the villains. Gunn has announced a number of projects that lay the groundwork for the DCU, but the villains could be one of the keys to the franchise’s success and setting it apart from the MCU.