# Let's cast the Avengers movie **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 14, 2008, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403 "2008-07-14T05:18:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2008, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/21 "2008-07-15T23:42:50Z")
Wow, Brad Pitt would be a great Thor. I wouldn’t have thought of it, but it works. I always wanted to see Will Smith as the Black Panther, but it’s hard to see him as part of an ensemble, and he just did a superhero movie. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/22 "2008-07-16T01:01:54Z")
Captain America is a casting choice I don’t envy. You have to have someone who can do action, has charisma, and can act. Not a common triad. Only guy I’ve seen who can do it and might still be young enough is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and he can’t be Cap. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/23 "2008-07-16T01:26:21Z")
I think [Jason Statham](http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Jason+Statham&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8) could be a Captain America. He just has to tone down the accent. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/24 "2008-07-16T02:16:20Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] I think [Jason Statham](http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Jason+Statham&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8) could be a Captain America. He just has to tone down the accent. [/QUOTE] I think Captain America pretty much _has_ to be played by an American. I’d like to be able to make a really great casting suggestion for Cap, but I’m coming up empty. Oddly, I think I could see Brad Pitt in the role. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/25 "2008-07-16T02:42:17Z")
Ooh - David Ogden Stiers would make a perfect Jarvis! (How could we forget the most important Avenger!) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/26 "2008-07-16T02:45:36Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866] Wow. That’s spectacularly awful. I mean, he’s got the chin to play a superhero, but the personality is 100% wrong. Captain America is earnest, driven, hardworking, sincere, unconflicted. He isn’t a laid-back pot-smoking bro. [/QUOTE] Right, the problem with casting Cap is that the actor can’t be a hypocrite or it won’t work. Does anyone know _any_ openly patriotic buff American actors under 30? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/27 "2008-07-16T02:56:07Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I think Captain America pretty much _has_ to be played by an American. [/quote] Yeah, no more outsourcing. I nominate John “The Marine” Cera. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/28 "2008-07-17T11:37:32Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] Yeah, no more outsourcing. I nominate John “The Marine” Cera. [/QUOTE] Never heard of him. How about _Michael_ Cera? (Hey, if Tobey Maguire can be a superhero, then so can Michael Cera!) ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/29 "2008-07-17T16:37:56Z")
[QUOTE=Greg Charles] Never heard of him. How about _Michael_ Cera? [/qUOTE] My mistake, the actor I’m describing is [John Cena](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1078479/), not Cera. Big chin, big muscles, boy-scout affect… I could see him as Cap. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/30 "2008-07-17T16:46:08Z")
Seriously… Is there no Vision? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/31 "2008-07-17T16:52:46Z")
[QUOTE=Bearflag70] Seriously… Is there no Vision? [/QUOTE] Seriously, I don’t think anything’s been announced about what characters will be in it other than Hulk, Iron Man, Cap and Thor. ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/32 "2008-07-17T17:24:20Z")
Based on that roster, it’s probably going to be something like the Avengers origin story. If it stays to canon, that would mean the original Avengers would be Iron Man, the Hulk, Ant-Man (Hank Pym, who later becomes Giant-Man), the Wasp, and Thor, with Captain America joining shortly thereafter. Others joined later, but if they want to keep it manageable, I don’t see how they can get much beyond that, at least for the first movie. Sounds like fun, whoever they cast. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/33 "2008-07-17T17:48:55Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] Right, the problem with casting Cap is that the actor can’t be a hypocrite or it won’t work. [/QUOTE] Huh? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/34 "2008-07-17T17:50:34Z")
[QUOTE=Miller] Huh? [/QUOTE] I’m right there with you. How many young actors (at least, young enough to play Cap) would then go around shouting “Down with America!” ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/35 "2008-07-17T17:55:22Z")
[QUOTE=Love Rhombus] Only guy I’ve seen who can do it and might still be young enough is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and he can’t be Cap. [/QUOTE] Why? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/36 "2008-07-17T18:28:40Z")
I think Duane Johnson would be a pretty good choice. He not only has the physique (and Cap has to really be a physical badass – he can’t hide behind a costume or a transformation like some of the others. He has to be buff all the time), he’s actually got some screen presence and some acting ability. I think he’s got the charisma to wear the suit and pull off a superhero performance. I wonder if **Love Rhombus** thinks he might be wrong for the role because he’s biracial. I actually think that could work in his favor. It’s not strict canon, but it allows him to be a more post-racial personification of America. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/37 "2008-07-17T18:37:12Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I think Duane Johnson would be a pretty good choice. He not only has the physique (and Cap has to really be a physical badass – he can’t hide behind a costume or a transformation like some of the others. He has to be buff all the time), he’s actually got some screen presence and some acting ability. I think he’s got the charisma to wear the suit and pull off a superhero performance. I wonder if **Love Rhombus** thinks he might be wrong for the role because he’s biracial. I actually think that could work in his favor. It’s not strict canon, but it allows him to be a more post-racial personification of America. [/QUOTE] If Samuel Jackson can play Nick Fury in a non-Ultimates-universe Marvel film… ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/38 "2008-07-17T19:15:39Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] I think Duane Johnson would be a pretty good choice. He not only has the physique (and Cap has to really be a physical badass – he can’t hide behind a costume or a transformation like some of the others. He has to be buff all the time), he’s actually got some screen presence and some acting ability. I think he’s got the charisma to wear the suit and pull off a superhero performance. I wonder if **Love Rhombus** thinks he might be wrong for the role because he’s biracial. I actually think that could work in his favor. It’s not strict canon, but it allows him to be a more post-racial personification of America. [/QUOTE] The problem is, Cap’s backstory firmly places him in the middle of an America consumed by race issues: he’s supposed to have been a frontline soldier, media darling, and national hero during WWII. Being biracial, in that time and place, rules out all three of those. Which is too bad, because otherwise, he’d be perfect for the role. ---
**Author:** ![Orual](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/779978/32.png) [@Orual](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orual)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/39 "2008-07-17T19:21:27Z")
[QUOTE=Miller] The problem is, Cap’s backstory firmly places him in the middle of an America consumed by race issues: he’s supposed to have been a frontline soldier, media darling, and national hero during WWII. [/QUOTE] You really think they’re going to stick with the WWII stuff for the movie? Is Captain America one of these magical non-agers like Wolverine? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403/40 "2008-07-17T19:31:56Z")
[QUOTE=Orual] You really think they’re going to stick with the WWII stuff for the movie? Is Captain America one of these magical non-agers like Wolverine? [/QUOTE] Marvel has already said that Captain America is going to be a World War II story: [http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=54651](http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=54651) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-cast-the-avengers-movie/456403.md?page=3)